3 ms·
From what I know the issue is that the App Store adds some DRM that the GPL would require to be open-sourced. Might be wrong though, I only have a vague underst
by aw3c2 14y ago
From what I know the issue is that the App Store adds some DRM that the GPL would require to be open-sourced. Might be wrong though, I only have a vague understanding.
- rmc 14y agoAFAIK one of the problems was that Apple disallow certain actions (like commerical usage) for software via the AppStore. You can only distribute GPL software written by someone else if you don't add any extra conditions. Apple won't distribute it via AppStore without the "no commerical usage" rules, so Apple can't carry it. DRM is fundamentally incompatible with open source licences like the GPL. You almost certainly cannot distribute other people's open source code with DRM. Other people wrote code and developed software that they'll give you the right to copy it under copyright law if you follow their rules. The AppStore does not meet those rules.
- yoshamano 14y agoFrom my under standing that's pretty close. More specifically it has to do with the GPLv3's concept that the hardware cannot limit what you can do with the software. Its why the only GPL software still in OS X is GPLv2, and the only reason its still there is because it hasn't been replaced with a BSD licensed equivalent yet. The largest example of this is probably CLANG. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clang https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clang