From help-octave-request at bevo dot che dot wisc dot edu Tue Feb 8 06:19:51 2000 Subject: Re: ATLAS and octave From: "Johan Kullstam" To: help-octave at bevo dot che dot wisc dot edu Date: 08 Feb 2000 07:19:53 -0500 "John W. Eaton" writes: > On 4-Feb-2000, Timothy H. Keitt wrote: > > | "John W. Eaton" wrote: > | > | > On 4-Feb-2000, Timothy H. Keitt wrote: > | > > | > There are at least a few reasons that make sense to me. > | > > | > First, there are licensing issues. If the tuned blas libraries are > | > distributed under terms that are not compatible with the GPL, then > | > we can't distribute a version of Octave that is linked with them. > | > | Does this include run-time linking? > > Yes. The GPL doesn't make a distinction between static and dynamic > or any other method of linking. I believe the claim is that combining > the peices by linking them together creates a derivative work, and > that if you create a derivative work based on GPL code, then you have > to follow the GPL if you distribute it. > > | If you compile a GPL program that > | requires libblas.so, can you be excluded from distributing it because someone > | might dynamically link it to a proprietary libblas.so? > > I think the answer to your specific question is no, because a free > library exists that can provide the functionality that the program > requires. > > However, if there is no way to make the program work using software > that may be distributed under terms compatible with the GPL, there is > trouble. As I understand it, the FSF claims that you can't sidestep > the conditions of the GPL by asking users to do the link. > My preference is free software that happens to be a good technical > solution too, so I'm glad to see ATLAS available so we don't have to > rely on vendor-supplied versions of the BLAS for performance. gnu emacs can link to motif. the configure script even provides --with-x-toolkit=motif. motif is definately not free. the link is dynamic. emacs being the flagship product of the fsf, i would think that these issues have been resolved. -- J o h a n K u l l s t a m [kullstam at ne dot mediaone dot net] Don't Fear the Penguin! ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Octave is freely available under the terms of the GNU GPL. Octave's home on the web: http://www.che.wisc.edu/octave/octave.html How to fund new projects: http://www.che.wisc.edu/octave/funding.html Subscription information: http://www.che.wisc.edu/octave/archive.html -----------------------------------------------------------------------