[cairo] Re: License for cairo changed to LGPL

[Jost Boekemeier]

On Thu, 2004-08-05 at 03:27, M. Evans wrote:
> Both the FSF and OSI deprecate the LGPL for legal
> reasons.

No.  That's out of context and does not apply to the cairo library.


> The idea that LGPL, because it is "standard," does
> not invoke corporate legal reviews, holds little
> water.  The LGPL hinges on technical definitions.
> These are highly debatable in court, change
> substantially over short time periods as the
> software industry mutates, vary from platform to
> platform, and have no case-law underpinnings (yet).

NO.  cairo is neither yacc nor a C++ library, its header file contains
only API.


> My opinion was long ago filed with the OSI when
> they deprecated the LGPL but called the wx
> workaround "clever"

Yes.  Adding special exceptions to a license which adds special
exceptions to a base license is indeed clever.  Especially as those
special exceptions make the base license useless.


> The LGPL is, as you indicate, very questionable,

FUD.


> If OSI is serious about
> deprecating this license, it should do more to
> publicize its problems.

Offtopic.  The change was obviously motivated by the desire to have
_free software_. So nobody cares if you, MS, SCO or OSI think that 
_open source_ is better than free or not.



Jost