5 ms·

There's plenty of free software thieves (the GPL violating kind) in Shenzhen. Sadly, there isn't a goddamn thing we can do about it. Go ahead, try enforcing th

There's plenty of free software thieves (the GPL violating kind) in Shenzhen. Sadly, there isn't a goddamn thing we can do about it. Go ahead, try enforcing the GPL in China. They'll just laugh in your face whilst trying to sell you the next shoddy widget on AliExpressazon.

isnifailed 3y ago
So, exactly like in the West?
- b59831 3y ago
  [dead]
- cscurmudgeon 3y ago
  False equivalence https://opensource.stackexchange.com/questions/11452/have-there-been-any-lawsuits-involving-breach-of-open-source-licences https://opensource.stackexchange.com/questions/11452/have-th... How many of those are in mainland China?m Even the neighboring country of Taiwan is careful about GPL https://www.leetsai.com/ltp-special-column/legal-issues-that-companies-should-be-aware-of-when-using-open-source-software-taiwan https://www.leetsai.com/ltp-special-column/legal-issues-that...
  - userbinator 3y ago
    Incidentally, don't call Taiwan a "neighboring country" when in mainland China.
    - cscurmudgeon 3y ago
      It is a neighbor and a separate country though.
- neilv 3y ago
  I get the impression that Western companies (and Chinese companies with non-disposable brands marketed in the West) can have GPL enforced against them. For example: https://sfconservancy.org/activities/ https://sfconservancy.org/activities/ I know one of the other dynamics is when the GPL copyright holder is more of a crunchy-granola hippie guru, who might just want to lovingly bring the lost soul into the fold, because they know not what they do. That's really not a deterrent to the people who know exactly what they're doing. Personally, I'd like to see copyright holders be less flower-child toward abusers, and more like a Scout who was helping an elderly person across the street, when they were attacked by a group of violent racists. It's not time to turn the other cheek, but to grab a heavy stick.
  - isnifailed 3y ago
    Yeah, no, they can’t. Plenty of western examples, such as Mikrotik.
Animats 3y ago
> Go ahead, try enforcing the GPL in China. Naomi Wu has actually done that.[1] [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vj04MKykmnQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vj04MKykmnQ
- wannacboatmovie 3y ago
  The same Naomi Wu that recently was visited by CCP goons who told her to mind her p's and q's? Yeah I don't see this happening again.
  - faitswulff 3y ago
    How is that relevant to enforcing GPL?
    - obmelvin 3y ago
      See this peer comment - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38669000 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38669000
  - chpatrick 3y ago
    As far as I know it was because of "reactionary" tweets, not GPL enforcement.
    - NicoJuicy 3y ago
      No, it was after she went to a business that violated gpl. She put it on YouTube and then she got silenced.
      - lvturner 3y ago
        Assuming this linked video is accurate, your statement is not quite correct. https://youtu.be/3p7bl7eFaEo?si=kAXZHfA2lxbXlLv- https://youtu.be/3p7bl7eFaEo?si=kAXZHfA2lxbXlLv-
DeathArrow 3y ago
I think many Chinese companies freely share code between them, regardless if it's open source or not. They just don't care about licenses and IP the way the West does. So, if you want to get the source code for X, you just have to learn Cantonese, go there and ask nicely.
- SeanLuke 3y ago
  As a former good Cantonese speaker, now terrible, let me assure you that there is no way to ask anything nicely in Cantonese. It's a rough-and-tumble, loud, crude, obnoxious gutter language. It's awesome. So much better than Mandarin. There's a reason why Cantonese is always the go-to language for "misc bizarre foreign language spoken by asians in the background" in movies, well that and the very high number of first-rate actors available from Hong Kong's movie industry. It's my favorite language in the world.

isnifailed 3y ago

So, exactly like in the West?

b59831 3y ago
[dead]
cscurmudgeon 3y ago
False equivalence https://opensource.stackexchange.com/questions/11452/have-there-been-any-lawsuits-involving-breach-of-open-source-licences https://opensource.stackexchange.com/questions/11452/have-th... How many of those are in mainland China?m Even the neighboring country of Taiwan is careful about GPL https://www.leetsai.com/ltp-special-column/legal-issues-that-companies-should-be-aware-of-when-using-open-source-software-taiwan https://www.leetsai.com/ltp-special-column/legal-issues-that...
- userbinator 3y ago
  Incidentally, don't call Taiwan a "neighboring country" when in mainland China.
  - cscurmudgeon 3y ago
    It is a neighbor and a separate country though.
neilv 3y ago
I get the impression that Western companies (and Chinese companies with non-disposable brands marketed in the West) can have GPL enforced against them. For example: https://sfconservancy.org/activities/ https://sfconservancy.org/activities/ I know one of the other dynamics is when the GPL copyright holder is more of a crunchy-granola hippie guru, who might just want to lovingly bring the lost soul into the fold, because they know not what they do. That's really not a deterrent to the people who know exactly what they're doing. Personally, I'd like to see copyright holders be less flower-child toward abusers, and more like a Scout who was helping an elderly person across the street, when they were attacked by a group of violent racists. It's not time to turn the other cheek, but to grab a heavy stick.
- isnifailed 3y ago
  Yeah, no, they can’t. Plenty of western examples, such as Mikrotik.

Animats 3y ago

> Go ahead, try enforcing the GPL in China. Naomi Wu has actually done that.[1] [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vj04MKykmnQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vj04MKykmnQ

wannacboatmovie 3y ago
The same Naomi Wu that recently was visited by CCP goons who told her to mind her p's and q's? Yeah I don't see this happening again.
- faitswulff 3y ago
  How is that relevant to enforcing GPL?
  - obmelvin 3y ago
    See this peer comment - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38669000 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38669000
- chpatrick 3y ago
  As far as I know it was because of "reactionary" tweets, not GPL enforcement.
  - NicoJuicy 3y ago
    No, it was after she went to a business that violated gpl. She put it on YouTube and then she got silenced.
    - lvturner 3y ago
      Assuming this linked video is accurate, your statement is not quite correct. https://youtu.be/3p7bl7eFaEo?si=kAXZHfA2lxbXlLv- https://youtu.be/3p7bl7eFaEo?si=kAXZHfA2lxbXlLv-

DeathArrow 3y ago

I think many Chinese companies freely share code between them, regardless if it's open source or not. They just don't care about licenses and IP the way the West does. So, if you want to get the source code for X, you just have to learn Cantonese, go there and ask nicely.

SeanLuke 3y ago
As a former good Cantonese speaker, now terrible, let me assure you that there is no way to ask anything nicely in Cantonese. It's a rough-and-tumble, loud, crude, obnoxious gutter language. It's awesome. So much better than Mandarin. There's a reason why Cantonese is always the go-to language for "misc bizarre foreign language spoken by asians in the background" in movies, well that and the very high number of first-rate actors available from Hong Kong's movie industry. It's my favorite language in the world.