From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id S272043AbTGYMcH (ORCPT ); Fri, 25 Jul 2003 08:32:07 -0400 Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org id S272045AbTGYMcG (ORCPT ); Fri, 25 Jul 2003 08:32:06 -0400 Received: from codepoet.org ([166.70.99.138]:5585 "EHLO winder.codepoet.org") by vger.kernel.org with ESMTP id S272043AbTGYMcA (ORCPT ); Fri, 25 Jul 2003 08:32:00 -0400 Date: Fri, 25 Jul 2003 06:47:07 -0600 From: Erik Andersen To: linux-kernel Cc: Andre Hedrick Subject: Re: Nokia A036 and the GPL Message-ID: <20030725124706.GB30451@codepoet.org> Reply-To: andersen@codepoet.org Mail-Followup-To: Erik Andersen , linux-kernel , Andre Hedrick Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline User-Agent: Mutt/1.3.28i X-Operating-System: Linux 2.4.19-rmk7, Rebel-NetWinder(Intel StrongARM 110 rev 3), 185.95 BogoMips X-No-Junk-Mail: I do not want to get *any* junk mail. Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org On Fri, 25 Jul 2003, Andre Hedrick wrote: > Who cares, the world according to Roman .. it all should be > free and to pursue litigation of any kind will offend people > and they will not use Linux. As Al Viro said earlier: ...you are politely advised to take your crusade and shove it ... I can't speak for anybody else, but I neither need nor welcome "help" from ideologists of any persuasion. It is clear you have some sortof personal grievances related to Linux code and licenses. Please take whatever it is you are trying to crusade about and do something about it -- somewhere else. Maybe you should find a lawyer and sue whoever has ticked you off rather than playing armchair lawyer on the lkml... Re the Nokia A036, as Copyright holder for BusyBox, I have emailed the folks at Nokia and I have no doubt they will take care of the problem shortly. A polite email asking people to comply is usually all it takes. And I also have no doubt, in the exceedingly unlikely event that litigation should eventually prove necessary, that my dad (who is a lawyer) would have no trouble prevailing and could make them pay legal fees and statutory damages (despite your earlier allegations to the contrary). Large companies like to respect intellectual property laws, so chances are roughly 0% this will ever get close to a courthouse. I see this device was made in .tw -- Nokia probably purchased distribution rights and hasn't the faintest clue what is inside... FYI, I send out (via my father) please-comply-with-the-license letters reasonably often (i.e. such as for the Linksys WRT54G mentioned earlier in this thread). I keep such things quiet. Such love notes have not stopped the spread of Linux... But frankly, I really don't care if companies are scared away. If they have not carefully thought through the business case for using Linux they certainly should not be using it in the first place. Nobody is being forced to use Linux (and by extension, busybox, etc), but when they do make the choice to use Linux, they also choose to either abide by the licensing provisions (the GPL) or face cease-and-desist letters, copyright violation lawsuits, and statutory damages. Thus far I've never earned even one penny of damages (which I consider a good thing). Because a polite note is usually all it takes, with the occasional follow up letter from my Dad's lawfirm asking them to comply by some date, with the occasional follow up letter giving them a cease-and-desist... -Erik -- Erik B. Andersen http://codepoet-consulting.com/ --This message was written using 73% post-consumer electrons--