3 ms·

[all the talk about microsoft really smells of 2007 :)] > BSD freedom, on the other hand, is "lossy". How so? I can still download the original BSD-licensed c

by olgeni 14y ago

[all the talk about microsoft really smells of 2007 :)] > BSD freedom, on the other hand, is "lossy". How so? I can still download the original BSD-licensed code without any loss. > If I get BSD code I have a lot of freedom, but the next guy doesn't. Why? In the worst case the next guy will just start from wherever I started. > It's fairly well known that there is BSD code in Windows. And be thankful for that - who knows what else could have crept in there. > And obviously, whatever Microsoft did with that code, they have no obligation to release their changes. And no obligation to release all the other unrelated code. > Microsoft is still sitting on BSD code that is free for them, but it's no longer free for anyone else. Apple too, but that's what the BSD license is for.

pjmlp 14y ago
You assume that the original code is still available, which might not be the case.
- PhantomLobe 14y ago
  It is in 99.99% of the cases.
- NateDad 14y ago
  In that case it's exactly the same as if Microsoft never used the code... it would still have disappeared. That's what would have happened if it were GPL code. Proprietary software vendors can't use GPL code, because there's no way they can use it without making their entire product GPL... which most software vendors won't do.
  - Nursie 14y ago
    In that specific case you are right. But in the case of (for instance) the Linksys NSLU2 (or various WRT and WAG models), the whole community around them was possible because the code was available and people could mess around with it. In this case it was to Linksys advantage to use GPL firmware, to the users advantage that more could be done with the device, and to the community's advantage because changes and improvements could be fed back to the general linux ecosystem.
    - NateDad 14y ago
      Linksys sells hardware, not software, it's not a valid comparison. People can copy their software all they want - they still have to buy the hardware to run it on.
  - pjmlp 14y ago
    No, because you could still get the code from Microsoft, assuming the original code would be gone for whatever reason. Commercial vendors could always make use of LGPL if they distribute the software. Unless they are using languages like Go. As for server side applications most vendors are just lechers. They use the code because they don't pay anything for it and most never return anything back, regardless of the license being used. This is my Fortune 500 experience.

by olgeni 14y ago

pjmlp 14y ago

You assume that the original code is still available, which might not be the case.

PhantomLobe 14y ago
It is in 99.99% of the cases.
NateDad 14y ago
In that case it's exactly the same as if Microsoft never used the code... it would still have disappeared. That's what would have happened if it were GPL code. Proprietary software vendors can't use GPL code, because there's no way they can use it without making their entire product GPL... which most software vendors won't do.
- Nursie 14y ago
  In that specific case you are right. But in the case of (for instance) the Linksys NSLU2 (or various WRT and WAG models), the whole community around them was possible because the code was available and people could mess around with it. In this case it was to Linksys advantage to use GPL firmware, to the users advantage that more could be done with the device, and to the community's advantage because changes and improvements could be fed back to the general linux ecosystem.
  - NateDad 14y ago
    Linksys sells hardware, not software, it's not a valid comparison. People can copy their software all they want - they still have to buy the hardware to run it on.
- pjmlp 14y ago
  No, because you could still get the code from Microsoft, assuming the original code would be gone for whatever reason. Commercial vendors could always make use of LGPL if they distribute the software. Unless they are using languages like Go. As for server side applications most vendors are just lechers. They use the code because they don't pay anything for it and most never return anything back, regardless of the license being used. This is my Fortune 500 experience.