On 06/14/2007 05:39 PM, Alexandre Oliva wrote:
On Jun 14, 2007, Florin Malita <[email protected]> wrote:
No, it's not: replacing does not create derivative
work. Modification does.
Thanks. Good point. This convinces me that this doesn't work as a
legal argument under copyright.
I still stand by my understanding that this restriction violates the
spirit of the license.
But since this elusive "spirit" is subject to everybody's interpretation
of the preamble, you must surely admit that it remains just a matter of
opinion ;)
It seems pretty obvious that the only right Tivo is withholding is the
right to install new versions on the device
Actually, no. They withhold the right to run versions that they don't
authorize themselves.
On that particular piece of hw, yes. But who's granted you the right to
*run* your modified copy *there* in the first place? GPLv2 explicitly
steers clear of anything "other than copying, distribution and
modification".
Back when GPLv2 was written, the right to run was never considered an
issue. It was taken for granted, because copyright didn't control
that in the US (it does in Brazil), and nobody had thought of
technical measures to stop people from running modified copies of
software. At least nobody involved in GPLv2, AFAIK.
The landscape has changed, and GPLv3 is meant to defend this freedom
that was taken for granted.
Then you agree that GPLv2 does not protect your freedom (taken for
granted) to run a modified copy on any particular device, or am I
misreading?
What do you think you do when you save a modified source file in your
editor?
Don't skip the part where the in-memory version started as an exact
copy of the original being replaced. Notice the difference? ;)
Sorry, I really don't follow. Both versions of the kernel binary also
started from a common source ancestor. Were you trying to make a
distinction on these grounds?
Exactly: they have a common ancestor, they are both derived from it. But
there's no ancestry relationship *between* them (unlike your edited file
example) so you cannot argue that one is a modification of the other.
Hence, Tivo is not really *modifying* the copies it distributes with the
device - they're *installing* brand new copies instead. They also choose
not to offer everybody the same privilege :-|
Does this go against the intent of the GPLv2 authors? Probably. Does it
go against the letter of GPLv2? Apparently not. Does it go against
your/some people's interpretation of the GPL "spirit"? Obviously. Does
it go against everybody's interpretation? Obviously not.
---
fm
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