Re: git to libgit2 code relicensing
- From
- Pau Garcia i Quiles <pgquiles@elpauer.org>
- Date
- Nov 15, 2008, 11:33 UTC
- Message-ID
- <3af572ac0811150333p28546975m9cf3ad73e62eb97@mail.gmail.com>
- In-Reply-To
- <491EACFA.9040604@op5.se>
On Sat, Nov 15, 2008 at 12:05 PM, Andreas Ericsson <ae@op5.se> wrote:
Show 14 quoted lines
>> Do you mean if I write a patch to libgit2, send it upstream and make >> it public on my website but it is not accepted upstream, I cannot link >> my modified libgit2 version (i. e. libgit2 + my patch) to my non-GPL >> software? > > I think that's the case, yes. > >> It looks insane to me: I wrote the patch and made it public >> but you guys did not accept it! >> > > Well, if you wrote a patch that uses a closed-source database library > to store git objects in, how would that benefit the community even if > you published the patch?
The case I had in mind is not that but this: say I write a patch which is totally open-source and uses only open-source software to add some feature to libgit2 but I want to link that libgit2 + mypatch to a closed source application (say, for instance, software for military use, which I'm not allowed to open source). To state it clearly: - My contribution is 100% open source - My contribution is 100% towards libgit2 - In fact, I could add that very feature to my application instead of libgit2 but as I'm open-source-friendly, I decide to contribute that patch to libgit2.
For some reason, that patch: - Is not accepted for some time (for instance, I'm thinking in that tcl/tk limitation which is preventing Junio from merging a patch, it's been in the "what's cooking" for some weeks now) - Or is not accepted at all
According to what you said, I only have two options: - Either I fork libgit2, or - I keep my feature in my application and do not contribute my feature to libgit2
It looks even more insane now!
What about rephrasing the libgcc exception to something like: "if you have a patch, and sent us that patch, but we put the patch in stand-by or declided the patch, you are still allowed to combine libgit2 with your closed-source application". After all, the fault is not in the closed-source part (I contributed the patch, it is 100% open-source and only uses 100% open-source) but in the libgit2 part (patch is on hold or not accepted at all).
-- Pau Garcia i Quiles http://www.elpauer.org (Due to my workload, I may need 10 days to answer)