[linux-audio-dev] fst, VST 2.0, kontakt

[Rui Nuno Capela]

Patrick Shirkey wrote:
> Lars Luthman wrote:
>> On Sat, 2006-07-01 at 23:53 +0700, Patrick Shirkey wrote:
>>> Dave Robillard wrote:
>>>> On Sat, 2006-07-01 at 17:43 +0200, Luis Garrido wrote:
>>>>>> LinuxSampler is not free software or open source software.
>>>>>>
>>>>> (sigh, must we, really?)
>>>>>
>>>>> It depends on who you choose to side with.
>>>> Forget "free software" then, I don't mean to start any debate, and
>>>> there's no "sides" here.  Just that people are talking about writing
>>>> open source alternatives to things (Kontakt) and referring to
>>>> LinuxSampler as the project to do so, so it should be pointed out so
>>>> people aren't misled.
>>>>
>>>> LinuxSampler is not open source.
>>>>
>>> It's veeeery close though.
>>>
>>> It's just using a modified GPL License which isn't clearly labelled
>>> as such. IANAL but that makes LinuxSampler illegally licensed if
>>> someone wanted to make a fuss about it. They call it GPL version 2 or
>>> 3 but it has been modified so that nullifies it AFAIK. If they don't
>>> fix it and someone does use their software to make a financial gain
>>> then it could very easily be argued that the software is licensed as
>>> GPL 2 or 3 and that makes it 100% open source.
>>
>> I don't think so. If the GPL is combined with some other license
>> agreement or restriction that is not compatible with the GPL, it
>> automatically cancels itself (see paragraph 7,
>> http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl.txt ) and normal copyright law applies.
>> Which in most countries means that only the actual copyright owner (if
>> there is a single one) is allowed to distribute it.
> 
> So then it is definitely not open source due to the current license.
> 

When did it happen that when some software project is not GPL is not
open-source? E.g. apache is not GPL, so it must not be open-source?

Problem with linuxsampler license void its all about that infamous
exception clause on the README file, "that it may NOT be used in
COMMERCIAL software or hardware products without prior written
authorization by the authors."

Beside the simple fact that it voids the GPL, it certainly doesn't make
it closed-source nor proprietary. Meanwhile, development has been
carried on as open-source, normally as ever someone noticed that damn
clause and flamed about it.


> I hope they fix it soon.
> 

Rumors are that it will be plain GPL as it was intended from the
beginning, with that exception being just ditched. In fact, the
exception was there all the time, even I didn't notice it for years :)

OTOH, linuxsampler is still an unfinished project and still in
development and yes, under an open-source fashion, thank you.

Bye now.
-- 
rncbc aka Rui Nuno Capela
rncbc at rncbc.org