Changeset - 5e6a129b4cd6
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Bradley Kuhn (bkuhn) - 10 years ago 2014-03-19 14:00:03
bkuhn@ebb.org
Rewrite paragraph to mention minified Javascript, and other changes.
Also, update the FIXMEs to be more verbose.
1 file changed with 8 insertions and 6 deletions:
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@@ -2074,394 +2074,396 @@ geographical distribution limitation since GPLv2 was released in 1991. We
 
have concluded that this provision is not needed and is not expected to be
 
needed in the future, and that it therefore should be removed.
 

	
 

	
 
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
 
\chapter{Odds, Ends, and Absolutely No Warranty}
 

	
 
GPLv2~\S\S0--7 constitute the freedom-defending terms of the GPLv2.  The remainder
 
of the GPLv2 handles administrivia and issues concerning warranties and
 
liability.
 

	
 
\section{GPLv2~\S9: FSF as Stewards of GPL}
 
\label{GPLv2s9}
 

	
 
FSF reserves the exclusive right to publish future versions of the GPL\@;
 
GPLv2~\S9 expresses this.  While the stewardship of the copyrights on the body
 
of GPL'd software around the world is shared among thousands of
 
individuals and organizations, the license itself needs a single steward.
 
Forking of the code is often regrettable but basically innocuous.  Forking
 
of licensing is disastrous.
 

	
 
(Chapter~\ref{tale-of-two-copylefts} discusses more about the various
 
versions of GPL.)
 

	
 
\section{GPLv2~\S10: Relicensing Permitted}
 
\label{GPLv2s10}
 

	
 
GPLv2~\S10 reminds the licensee of what is already implied by the nature of
 
copyright law.  Namely, the copyright holder of a particular software
 
program has the prerogative to grant alternative agreements under separate
 
copyright licenses.
 

	
 
\section{GPLv2~\S11: No Warranty}
 
\label{GPLv2s11}
 

	
 
Most warranty disclaimer language shout at you.  The
 
\href{http://www.law.cornell.edu/ucc/2/2-316}{Uniform Commercial
 
  Code~\S2-316} requires that disclaimers of warranty be ``conspicuous''.
 
There is apparently general acceptance that \textsc{all caps} is the
 
preferred way to make something conspicuous, and that has over decades worked
 
its way into the voodoo tradition of warranty disclaimer writing.
 

	
 
Some have argued the GPL is unenforceable in some jurisdictions because
 
its disclaimer of warranties is impermissibly broad.  However, GPLv2~\S11
 
contains a jurisdictional savings provision, which states that it is to be
 
interpreted only as broadly as allowed by applicable law.  Such a
 
provision ensures that both it, and the entire GPL, is enforceable in any
 
jurisdiction, regardless of any particular law regarding the
 
permissibility of certain warranty disclaimers.
 

	
 
Finally, one important point to remember when reading GPLv2~\S11 is that GPLv2~\S1
 
permits the sale of warranty as an additional service, which GPLv2~\S11 affirms.
 

	
 
\section{GPLv2~\S12: Limitation of Liability}
 
\label{GPLv2s12}
 

	
 
There are many types of warranties, and in some jurisdictions some of them
 
cannot be disclaimed.  Therefore, usually agreements will have both a
 
warranty disclaimer and a limitation of liability, as we have in GPLv2~\S12.
 
GPLv2~\S11 thus gets rid of all implied warranties that can legally be
 
disavowed. GPLv2~\S12, in turn, limits the liability of the actor for any
 
warranties that cannot legally be disclaimed in a particular jurisdiction.
 

	
 
Again, some have argued the GPL is unenforceable in some jurisdictions
 
because its limitation of liability is impermissibly broad. However, \S
 
12, just like its sister, GPLv2~\S11, contains a jurisdictional savings
 
provision, which states that it is to be interpreted only as broadly as
 
allowed by applicable law.  As stated above, such a provision ensures that
 
both GPLv2~\S12, and the entire GPL, is enforceable in any jurisdiction,
 
regardless of any particular law regarding the permissibility of limiting
 
liability.
 

	
 
So end the terms and conditions of the GNU General Public License.
 

	
 
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
 
\chapter{GPLv3}
 
\label{GPLv3}
 

	
 
This chapter discussed the text of GPLv3.  Much of this material herein
 
includes text that was adapted (with permission) from text that FSF
 
originally published as part of the so-called ``rationale documents'' for the
 
various discussion drafts of GPLv3.
 

	
 
The FSF ran a somewhat public process to develop GPLv3, and it was the first
 
attempt of its kind to develop a Free Software license this way.  Ultimately,
 
RMS was the primary author of GPLv3, but he listened to feedback from all
 
sorts of individuals and even for-profit companies.  Nevertheless, in
 
attempting to understand GPLv3 after the fact, the materials available from
 
the GPLv3 process have a somewhat ``drinking from the firehose'' effect.
 
This chapter seeks to explain GPLv3 to newcomers, who perhaps are familiar
 
with GPLv2.
 

	
 
\section{Understanding GPLv3 As An Upgraded GPLv2}
 

	
 
Ultimately, GPLv2 and GPLv3 co-exist as active licenses in regular use.  As
 
discussed in Chapter\~ref{tale-of-two-copylefts}, GPLv1 was never in regular
 
use alongside GPLv2.  However, given GPLv2's widespread popularity and
 
existing longevity by the time GPLv3 was published, it is not surprising that
 
some licensors have continued to prefer GPLv2-only or GPLv2-or-later as their
 
preferred license.  GPLv3 has gained major adoption by many projects, old and
 
new, but many projects have not upgraded due to (in some cases) mere laziness
 
and (in other cases) policy preference for some of GPLv2's terms.
 

	
 
Given this ``two GPLs'' world is the one we all live in, it makes sense to
 
consider GPLv3 in terms of how it differs from GPLv2.  Also, most of the best
 
GPL experts in the world must deal regularly with both licenses, and
 
admittedly have decades of experience of GPLv2 while the most experience with
 
GPLv3 that's possible is by default less than a decade.
 

	
 
These two factors usually cause even new students of GPL to start with GPLv2
 
and move on to GPLv3, and this tutorial follows that pattern.
 

	
 
Overall, the changes made in GPLv3 admittedly \textit{increased} the
 
complexity of the license.  The FSF stated at the start of the GPLv3 process
 
that they would have liked to oblige those who have asked for a simpler and
 
shorter GPL\@.  Ultimately, the FSF gave priority to making GPLv3 do the job
 
that needs to be done to build a better copyleft.  Obsession for concision
 
should never trump software freedom.
 

	
 
\section{GPLv3~\S0: Giving In On ``Defined Terms''}
 

	
 
One of lawyers' most common complaints about GPLv2 is that defined terms in
 
the document appear throughout.  Most licenses define terms up-front.
 
However, GPL was always designed both as a document that should be easily
 
understood both by lawyers and by software developers: it is a document
 
designed to give freedom to software developers and users, and therefore it
 
should be comprehensible to that constituency.
 

	
 
Interestingly enough, one coauthor of this tutorial who is both a lawyer and
 
a developer pointed out that in law school, she understood defined terms more
 
quickly than other law students precisely because of her programming
 
background.  For developers, having \verb0#define0 (in the C programming
 
language) or other types of constants and/or macros that automatically expand
 
in the place where they are used is second nature.  As such, adding a defined
 
terms section was not terribly problematic for developers, and thus GPLv3
 
adds one.  Most of these defined terms are somewhat straightforward and bring
 
forward better worded definitions from GPLv2.  Herein, this tutorial
 
discusses a few of the new ones.
 

	
 
GPLv3~\S0 includes definitions of four new terms not found in any form in
 
GPLv2: ``covered work'', ``propagate'', ``convey'', and ``Appropriate Legal
 
Notices''.
 

	
 
While ``covered by this license'' is a phrase found in GPLv2, defining it
 
more complete in a single as ``covered work'' enables some of the wording in
 
GPLv3 to be simpler and clearer than its GPLv2 counterparts.
 

	
 
% FIXME: does propagate  definition still work the same way in final draft?
 

	
 
The term ``propagate'' serves two purposes.  First, ``propagate'' provides a
 
simple and convenient means for distinguishing between the kinds of uses of a
 
work that the GPL imposes conditions on and the kinds of uses that the GPL
 
does not (for the most part) impose conditions on.
 

	
 
Second, ``propagate'' furthers our goal of making the license as global as
 
possible in its wording and effect.  When a work is licensed under the GPL,
 
the copyright law of some particular country will govern certain legal issues
 
arising under the license.  A term like ``distribute'' or its equivalent in
 
languages other than English, is used in several national copyright statutes.
 
The scope of ``distribution'' in the copyright context can differ from
 
country to country.  The GPL does not seek to necessarily use the specific
 
meaning of ``distribution'' that exists under United States copyright law or
 
any other country's copyright law.
 

	
 
Therefore, the GPL defines the term ``propagate'' by reference to activities
 
that require permission under ``applicable copyright law'', but excludes
 
execution and private modification from the definition.  GPLv3's definition
 
also gives examples of activities that may be included within ``propagation''
 
but it also makes clear that, under the copyright laws of a given country,
 
``propagation'' may include other activities as well.
 

	
 
% FIXME: paragraph number change , and more on Convey once definition comes.
 

	
 
The third paragraph of section 2 represents another effort to compensate for
 
variation in national copyright law.  We distinguish between propagation that
 
enables parties other than the licensee to make or receive copies, and other
 
forms of propagation.  As noted above, the meaning of ``distribution'' under
 
copyright law varies from country to country, including with respect to
 
whether making copies available to other parties (such as related public or
 
corporate entities) is ``distribution.'' ``Propagation,'' however, is a term
 
not tied to any statutory language.  Propagation that does not enable other
 
parties to make or receive copies --- for example, making private copies or
 
privately viewing the program --- is permitted unconditionally.  Propagation
 
that does enable other parties to make or receive copies is permitted as
 
``distribution,'' subject to the conditions set forth in sections 4--6.
 

	
 
% FIXME: Appropriate Legal Notices
 

	
 
\section{GPLv3~\S1: Understanding CCS}
 

	
 
% FIXME: Talk briefly about importance of CCS and reference compliance guide
 

	
 
% FIXME: reword source code a bit
 
% FIXME: verify this still matches final GPLv3 text.
 
% FIXME:  link to GPLv2 tutorial sections if possible and where appropriate.
 

	
 
Section 1 retains GPLv2's definition of ``source code'' and adds an explicit
 
definition of ``object code'' as ``any non-source version of a work.''
 
GPLv3\~S1 retains GPLv2's definition of ``source code'' and adds an explicit
 
definition of ``object code'' as ``any non-source version of a work''.
 
Object code is not restricted to a narrow technical meaning and is to be
 
understood broadly as including any form of the work other than the preferred
 
form for making modifications to it.  Object code therefore includes any kind
 
of transformed version of source code, such as bytecode.  The definition of
 
object code also ensures that licensees cannot escape their obligations under
 
the GPL by resorting to shrouded source or obfuscated programming.
 
of transformed version of source code, such as bytecode or minified
 
Javascript.  The definition of object code also ensures that licensees cannot
 
escape their obligations under the GPL by resorting to shrouded source or
 
obfuscated programming.
 

	
 
% FIXME: CCS Coresponding Source updated to newer definition in later drafts
 

	
 
Keeping with the desire to ``round up'' definitions that were spread
 
throughout the text of GPLv2, the definition of CCS\footnote{Note that the
 
  preferred term by those who work with both GPLv2 and GPLv3 is ``Complete
 
  Corresponding Source'', abbreviated to ``CCS''.  Admittedly, the word
 
  ``complete'' no longer appears in GPLv3 (which uses the word ``all''
 
  instead).  However, both GPLv2 and the early drafts of GPLv3 itself used
 
  the word complete, and early GPLv3 drafts even included the phrase
 
  ``Complete Corresponding Source''.  Meanwhile, use of the acronym ``CCS''
 
  (sometimes, ``C&CS'') was so widespread among GPL enforcers that its use
 
  continues even though GPLv3-focused experts tend to say just the defined
 
  term of ``Corresponding Source''.}, or, as GPLv3 officially calls it,
 
``Corresponding Source'', is given in GPLv3~\S1\P4.  This definition is as
 
broad as necessary to protect users' exercise of their rights under the
 
GPL. We follow the definition with particular examples to remove any doubt
 
that they are to be considered Complete Corresponding Source Code. We wish to
 
make completely clear that a licensee cannot avoid complying with the
 
requirements of the GPL by dynamically linking an add-on component to the
 
original version of a program.
 

	
 
Though the definition of Complete Corresponding Source Code in the
 
second paragraph of section 1 is expansive, it is not sufficient to
 
protect users' freedoms in many circumstances.  For example, a GPL'd
 
program, or a modified version of such a program, might need to be
 
signed with a key or authorized with a code in order for it to run on
 
a particular machine and function properly. Similarly, a program that
 
produces digitally-restricted files might require a decryption code in
 
order to read the output.  
 

	
 
% FIXME: Standard Interface
 

	
 
% FIXME: System Libraries: it's in a different place and changed in later drafts
 

	
 
The final paragraph of section 1 revises the exception to the source code
 
distribution requirement in GPLv2 that we have sometimes called the system
 
library exception. This exception has been read to prohibit certain
 
distribution arrangements that we consider reasonable and have not sought to
 
prevent, such as distribution of gcc linked with a non-free C library that is
 
included as part of a larger non-free system. This is not to say that such
 
non-free libraries are legitimate; rather, preventing free software from
 
linking with these libraries would hurt free software more than it would hurt
 
proprietary software.
 

	
 
As revised, the exception has two parts. Part (a) rewords the GPLv2
 
exception for clarity but also removes the words ``unless that
 
component itself accompanies the executable.''  By itself, (a) would
 
be too permissive, allowing distributors to evade their
 
responsibilities under the GPL.  We have therefore added part (b) to
 
specify when a system library that is an adjunct of a major essential
 
operating system component, compiler, or interpreter does not trigger
 
the requirement to distribute source code.  The more low-level the
 
functionality provided by the library, the more likely it is to be
 
qualified for this exception.
 

	
 
\section{GPLv3~\S2: Basic Permissions}
 

	
 
% FIXME: phrase ``unmodified Program'' appears due to User Products exception
 

	
 
We have included the first sentence of section 2 to further internationalize
 
the GPL. Under the copyright laws of some countries, it may be necessary for
 
a copyright license to include an explicit provision setting forth the
 
duration of the rights being granted. In other countries, including the
 
United States, such a provision is unnecessary but permissible.
 

	
 
The first paragraph of section 2 also acknowledges that licensees under the
 
GPL enjoy rights of copyright fair use, or the equivalent under applicable
 
law. These rights are compatible with, and not in conflict with, the freedoms
 
that the GPL seeks to protect, and the GPL cannot and should not restrict
 
them.
 

	
 
% FIXME: propagate and convey
 

	
 
Section 2 distinguishes between activities of a licensee that are permitted
 
without limitation and activities that trigger additional requirements. The
 
second paragraph of section 2 guarantees the basic freedoms of privately
 
modifying and running the program. However, the right to privately modify and
 
run the program is terminated if the licensee brings a patent infringement
 
lawsuit against anyone for activities relating to a work based on the
 
program.
 

	
 

	
 
\section{GPLv3~\S3: What Hath DMCA Wrought}
 
\label{GPLv3s3}
 

	
 
% FIXME: reference the section in DMCA about this, maybe already there in
 
%        GPLv2 section?
 

	
 
% FIXME: Wrong paragraph now.
 

	
 
The second paragraph of section 3 declares that no GPL'd program is part of
 
an effective technological protection measure, regardless of what the program
 
does. Ill-advised legislation in the United States and other countries has
 
prohibited circumvention of such technological measures. If a covered work is
 
distributed as part of a system for generating or accessing certain data, the
 
effect of this paragraph is to prevent someone from claiming that some other
 
GPL'd program that accesses the same data is an illegal circumvention.
 

	
 
\section{GPLv3~\S4: Verbatim Copying}
 

	
 
% FIXME: there appear to be minor changes here in later drafts, fix that.
 

	
 
Section 4 has been revised from its corresponding section in GPLv2 in light
 
of the new section 7 on license compatibility. A distributor of verbatim
 
copies of the program's source code must obey any existing additional terms
 
that apply to parts of the program. In addition, the distributor is required
 
to keep intact all license notices, including notices of such additional
 
terms.
 

	
 
\section{GPLv3~\S5: Modified Source}
 

	
 
% FIXME: 5(a) is slightly different in final version
 

	
 
Section 5 contains a number of changes relative to the corresponding section
 
in GPLv2. Subsection 5a slightly relaxes the requirements regarding notice of
 
changes to the program. In particular, the modified files themselves need no
 
longer be marked. This reduces administrative burdens for developers of
 
modified versions of GPL'd software.
 

	
 
Under subsection 5a, as in the corresponding provision of GPLv2, the notices
 
must state ``the date of any change,'' which we interpret to mean the date of
 
one or more of the licensee's changes.  The best practice would be to include
 
the date of the latest change.  However, in order to avoid requiring revision
 
of programs distributed under ``GPL version 2 or later,'' we have retained
 
the existing wording.
 

	
 
% FIXME:  It's now (b) and (c).  Also, ``validity'' of proprietary
 
%         relicensing?  Give me a break.  I'll fix that.
 

	
 
Subsection 5b is the central copyleft provision of the license.  It now
 
states that the GPL applies to the whole of the work.  The license must be
 
unmodified, except as permitted by section 7, which allows GPL'd code to be
 
combined with parts covered by certain other kinds of free software licensing
 
terms. Another change in subsection 5b is the removal of the words ``at no
 
charge,'' which was often misinterpreted by commentators.  The last sentence
 
of subsection 5b explicitly recognizes the validity of disjunctive
 
dual-licensing.
 

	
 
%  FIXME: 5d.  Related to Appropriatey Legal notices
 

	
 

	
 
% follows 5d now, call it the ``final paragraph''
 

	
 
The paragraph following subsection 5c has been revised for clarity, but the
 
underlying meaning is unchanged. When independent non-derivative sections are
 
distributed for use in a combination that is a covered work, the whole of the
 
combination must be licensed under the GPL, regardless of the form in which
 
such combination occurs, including combination by dynamic linking. The final
 
sentence of the paragraph adapts this requirement to the new compatibility
 
provisions of section 7.
 

	
 
\section{GPLv3~\S6: Non-Source and Corresponding Source}
 

	
 
Section 6 of GPLv3, which clarifies and revises GPLv2 section 3, requires
 
distributors of GPL'd object code to provide access to the corresponding
 
source code, in one of four specified ways. As noted above, ``object code''
 
in GPLv3 is defined broadly to mean any non-source version of a work.
 

	
 
% FIXME:  probably mostly still right, needs some updates, though.
 

	
 
Subsections 6a and 6b now apply specifically to distribution of object code
 
in a physical product. Physical products include embedded systems, as well as
 
physical software distribution media such as CDs. As in GPLv2, the
 
distribution of object code may either be accompanied by the machine-readable
 
source code, or it may be accompanied by a written offer to provide the
 
machine-readable source code to any third party. GPLv3 clarifies that the
 
medium for software interchange on which the machine-readable source code is
 
provided must be a durable physical medium. Subsection 6b does not prevent a
 
distributor from offering to provide source code to a third party by some
 
other means, such as transmission over a network, so long as the option of
 
obtaining source code on a physical medium is presented.
 

	
 
% FIXME:  probably mostly still right, needs some updates, though.
 

	
 
Subsection 6b revises the requirements for the written offer to provide
 
source code. As before, the offer must remain valid for at least three
 
years. In addition, even after three years, a distributor of a product
 
containing GPL'd object code must offer to provide source code for as long as
 
the distributor also continues to offer spare parts or customer support for
 
the product model. We believe that this is a reasonable and appropriate
 
requirement; a distributor should be prepared to provide source code if he or
 
she is prepared to provide support for other aspects of a physical product.
 

	
 
% FIXME: 10x language is gone.
 

	
 
Subsection 6b also increases the maximum permitted price for providing a copy
 
of the source code. GPLv2 stated that the price could be no more than the
 
cost of physically performing source distribution; GPLv3 allows the price to
 
be up to ten times the distributor's cost. It may not be practical to expect
 
some organizations to provide such copies at cost. Moreover, permitting such
 
organizations to charge ten times the cost is not particularly harmful, since
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