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Why doesn't distributing the source satisfy all of these? Can't users do anything they want with the program itself? Couldn't jailbreaking (or paying $99/yr for
by sixcorners 14y ago
Why doesn't distributing the source satisfy all of these? Can't users do anything they want with the program itself? Couldn't jailbreaking (or paying $99/yr for the developer program) to run your own apps be considered the same as any other step you need to run programs on other platforms? On Windows you need to put it in an .exe file, on iOS you need to fork over $99.
- mrsteveman1 14y agoIn short, because the binary is also covered by the GPL and must be redistributable and usable, and nothing that comes from the App Store meets those requirements for anyone except the original buyer/downloader, because they are all encrypted. If Apple's platform merely refused to run unsigned binaries (like Tivo), it may be kosher to ship GPLv2 (but not v3 for this exact reason), but they're encrypted too, which takes away those rights OUTSIDE the platform as well.