Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id S933389AbXFRWBl (ORCPT ); Mon, 18 Jun 2007 18:01:41 -0400 Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org id S933329AbXFRWBa (ORCPT ); Mon, 18 Jun 2007 18:01:30 -0400 Received: from viefep18-int.chello.at ([213.46.255.22]:5233 "EHLO viefep34-int.chello.at" rhost-flags-OK-OK-OK-FAIL) by vger.kernel.org with ESMTP id S933291AbXFRWB3 (ORCPT ); Mon, 18 Jun 2007 18:01:29 -0400 Date: Tue, 19 Jun 2007 00:01:25 +0200 From: Carlo Wood To: Joshua David Williams Cc: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org Subject: Re: GPLv3 dispute solution - new open source license? Message-ID: <20070618220125.GB13538@alinoe.com> Mail-Followup-To: Carlo Wood , Joshua David Williams , linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org References: <200706181747.23230.yurimxpxman@gmail.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline In-Reply-To: <200706181747.23230.yurimxpxman@gmail.com> User-Agent: Mutt/1.5.13 (2006-08-11) Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org Content-Length: 1623 Lines: 39 I think that one of the main problems with the GPLv2 versus GPLv3 dispute is the discord that it saws between developers around the world. Right now, 66% is GPL, 6.5% is LGPL (using the stats from freshmeat here), 6% BSD, and the rest can be neglected ;) (see bottom of http://freshmeat.net/stats/) That means that if someone decides that he wants to write free software (and license it under the GPL), he can choose from a large code base. What those stats don't say, however - is how many people said "version 2 or later", and how many said "version 2". If next people start to write software - they might be forced to use GPLv2 because they want to use other software that was only version 2. While others will start to write new software under version 3 (if only because they don't know better - like 90% of the people who copied the template with "version 2 or later"). The result is that two seperate groups of software will start to emerge that cannot use from eachother. And because both will be consirably large, that is a Bad Thing(tm). Imho, it is much worse that this seperation of the pool of open source code will occur than everyone using version 2, or everyone using version 3, and the effect that that will have. Now, writing yet another license for the linux kernel is therefore NOT the solution - if you get my drift. -- Carlo Wood - To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in the body of a message to majordomo@vger.kernel.org More majordomo info at http://vger.kernel.org/majordomo-info.html Please read the FAQ at http://www.tux.org/lkml/