Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id S1753748AbYJOJFg (ORCPT ); Wed, 15 Oct 2008 05:05:36 -0400 Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org id S1751820AbYJOJF2 (ORCPT ); Wed, 15 Oct 2008 05:05:28 -0400 Received: from earthlight.etchedpixels.co.uk ([81.2.110.250]:33158 "EHLO lxorguk.ukuu.org.uk" rhost-flags-OK-OK-OK-FAIL) by vger.kernel.org with ESMTP id S1751608AbYJOJF1 (ORCPT ); Wed, 15 Oct 2008 05:05:27 -0400 Date: Wed, 15 Oct 2008 10:05:21 +0100 From: Alan Cox To: "Kaz Kylheku" Cc: "Chris Friesen" , linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org Subject: Re: GPL question: using large contiguous memory in proprietary driver. Message-ID: <20081015100521.739277f2@lxorguk.ukuu.org.uk> In-Reply-To: <3f43f78b0810141623s4282f9eof87014d2dee17810@mail.gmail.com> References: <3f43f78b0810141456r159d71e7h9763e50e7dbc0c51@mail.gmail.com> <48F5193B.1010601@nortel.com> <3f43f78b0810141623s4282f9eof87014d2dee17810@mail.gmail.com> X-Mailer: Claws Mail 3.5.0 (GTK+ 2.12.12; x86_64-redhat-linux-gnu) Organization: Red Hat UK Cyf., Amberley Place, 107-111 Peascod Street, Windsor, Berkshire, SL4 1TE, Y Deyrnas Gyfunol. Cofrestrwyd yng Nghymru a Lloegr o'r rhif cofrestru 3798903 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org List-ID: X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org Content-Length: 827 Lines: 19 > But thanks to the gracious tolerance of the kernel development > community, such drivers are permitted to exist. That is the question: Thats an interesting interpretation and not one I'd want to rely upon. > setting aside GPL chapter and verse, could that tolerance extend > to allow such a driver to get a piece of boot-time memory, and if so, > what mechanism would be tolerated? You should discuss such matters with your lawyer. What you are trying to ask I think is a question about what constitutes an independant work, and that is a legal not a technical question. Alan -- 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/