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I probably don't have all the info on the various laws across the US and EU that are being pushed, but I'm confused why Linux distros don't just update their li

I probably don't have all the info on the various laws across the US and EU that are being pushed, but I'm confused why Linux distros don't just update their licensing and add a notice on the installation screen that it is illegal to run their OS in places where these laws exist? Heck, Linus Torvalds should just add an amendment to the next release of the Linux Kernel that makes it illegal to use in any jurisdiction that requires age verification laws. This would obviously cause such a massive disruption (especially in California) that the age laws would have to be rolled back immediately. This seems like a no-brainer to me but I am admittedly ignorant on this situation. I'm sure there's a good reason why this isn't happening if anyone cares to explain.

mvdwoord 7mo ago
Would be funny indeed... And also curious why nobody does that.
- shagie 7mo ago
  https://www.gnu.org/licenses/old-licenses/gpl-2.0.en.html https://www.gnu.org/licenses/old-licenses/gpl-2.0.en.html 6. Each time you redistribute the Program (or any work based on the Program), the recipient automatically receives a license from the original licensor to copy, distribute or modify the Program subject to these terms and conditions. You may not impose any further restrictions on the recipients' exercise of the rights granted herein. You are not responsible for enforcing compliance by third parties to this License. It would be in violation of the GPL and such a license would not be an OSI approved license. https://opensource.org/osd https://opensource.org/osd 5. No Discrimination Against Persons or Groups The license must not discriminate against any person or group of persons.
gzread 7mo ago
Because they want market share, and throwing a hissyfit over being asked to add an "I am over 18" checkbox is not good PR. If Debian starts refusing to work in California because it doesn't want to add a checkbox, it will simply be replaced by someone who adds that checkbox and doesn't throw the fit.
- troyvit 7mo ago
  As the article says, it's not about just checking a box: "Every OS provider must then: provide an interface at account setup collecting a birth date or age, and expose a real-time API that broadcasts the user's age bracket (under 13, 13 to 15, 16 to 17, 18+) to any application running on the system."
  - gzread 7mo ago
    Fine, a drop-down menu, not a checkbox. They're throwing a hissy fit over a drop-down menu with 4 items.
    - troyvit 7mo ago
      You're missing the rest of it. It takes whatever you put in that dropdown menu and broadcasts it to the rest of the operating system including -- for instance -- your browser. The browser then uses that information to decide what to show you. The same would apply to any other app designed to receive it. You can call what's happening in this thread a hissy fit, but how does that compare to $70 million in lobbying to get this added to operating systems? Isn't that a bit more of a fit? When you look at who is behind the bills, do you look at their history and wonder whose best interest they might have at heart?
      - gzread 7mo ago
        How many other things in the operating system are like that already? Every file in your home directory, for instance?
  - Aunche 7mo ago
    There is no requirement that the OS has to verify the person's ID. It literally just requires a dropdown menu to select your age bracket.
  - deleted 7mo ago
    [deleted]
- 7mo ago
PeterisP 7mo ago
That would be a violation of the copyright law or the GPL licence - you aren't permitted to take GPL code and redistribute it with some extra restrictions added on to it. If it's not (fully) your code, you aren't free to set the licence conditions; Linus can't do that without getting approval from 100% (not 99% or so) of authors who contributed code. What one can do is add an informative disclaimer saying "To the best of our knowledge, installing or running this thing in California is prohibited - we permit to do whatever you want with it, but how you'll comply with that law is your business".
- deleted 7mo ago
  [deleted]
- BeetleB 7mo ago
  You can if you own the copyright to the content. I don't know the state of Linux, but this is a reason the FSF (and many other projects) requires people assign their copyright to them when they submit code. It also helps when you take an offender to court. If I contribute to a project but don't assign copyright, then they cannot take offenders to court if my code was copied illegally. The burden is on me to do so. Of course, all code released prior to the change still remains on the original license.
  - eikenberry 7mo ago
    The FSF stopped requiring copyright assignment in 2021.
bregma 7mo ago
The Linux kernel is licensed GPLv2. The GPLv2 license forbids adding addition terms that further restrict the use of the software. A "Linux distro" is not the Linux kernel. It's possible for some distros to add such license terms to their distribution media, but others like Debian and Debian-based ones adhere to the GPL so no go.

mvdwoord 7mo ago

Would be funny indeed... And also curious why nobody does that.

shagie 7mo ago
https://www.gnu.org/licenses/old-licenses/gpl-2.0.en.html https://www.gnu.org/licenses/old-licenses/gpl-2.0.en.html 6. Each time you redistribute the Program (or any work based on the Program), the recipient automatically receives a license from the original licensor to copy, distribute or modify the Program subject to these terms and conditions. You may not impose any further restrictions on the recipients' exercise of the rights granted herein. You are not responsible for enforcing compliance by third parties to this License. It would be in violation of the GPL and such a license would not be an OSI approved license. https://opensource.org/osd https://opensource.org/osd 5. No Discrimination Against Persons or Groups The license must not discriminate against any person or group of persons.

gzread 7mo ago

Because they want market share, and throwing a hissyfit over being asked to add an "I am over 18" checkbox is not good PR. If Debian starts refusing to work in California because it doesn't want to add a checkbox, it will simply be replaced by someone who adds that checkbox and doesn't throw the fit.

troyvit 7mo ago
As the article says, it's not about just checking a box: "Every OS provider must then: provide an interface at account setup collecting a birth date or age, and expose a real-time API that broadcasts the user's age bracket (under 13, 13 to 15, 16 to 17, 18+) to any application running on the system."
- gzread 7mo ago
  Fine, a drop-down menu, not a checkbox. They're throwing a hissy fit over a drop-down menu with 4 items.
  - troyvit 7mo ago
    You're missing the rest of it. It takes whatever you put in that dropdown menu and broadcasts it to the rest of the operating system including -- for instance -- your browser. The browser then uses that information to decide what to show you. The same would apply to any other app designed to receive it. You can call what's happening in this thread a hissy fit, but how does that compare to $70 million in lobbying to get this added to operating systems? Isn't that a bit more of a fit? When you look at who is behind the bills, do you look at their history and wonder whose best interest they might have at heart?
    - gzread 7mo ago
      How many other things in the operating system are like that already? Every file in your home directory, for instance?
- Aunche 7mo ago
  There is no requirement that the OS has to verify the person's ID. It literally just requires a dropdown menu to select your age bracket.
- deleted 7mo ago
  [deleted]
7mo ago

PeterisP 7mo ago

That would be a violation of the copyright law or the GPL licence - you aren't permitted to take GPL code and redistribute it with some extra restrictions added on to it. If it's not (fully) your code, you aren't free to set the licence conditions; Linus can't do that without getting approval from 100% (not 99% or so) of authors who contributed code. What one can do is add an informative disclaimer saying "To the best of our knowledge, installing or running this thing in California is prohibited - we permit to do whatever you want with it, but how you'll comply with that law is your business".

deleted 7mo ago
[deleted]
BeetleB 7mo ago
You can if you own the copyright to the content. I don't know the state of Linux, but this is a reason the FSF (and many other projects) requires people assign their copyright to them when they submit code. It also helps when you take an offender to court. If I contribute to a project but don't assign copyright, then they cannot take offenders to court if my code was copied illegally. The burden is on me to do so. Of course, all code released prior to the change still remains on the original license.
- eikenberry 7mo ago
  The FSF stopped requiring copyright assignment in 2021.

bregma 7mo ago

The Linux kernel is licensed GPLv2. The GPLv2 license forbids adding addition terms that further restrict the use of the software. A "Linux distro" is not the Linux kernel. It's possible for some distros to add such license terms to their distribution media, but others like Debian and Debian-based ones adhere to the GPL so no go.