Linonut wrote:
> * Tim Smith peremptorily fired off this memo:
>> In article
>> <fbd93411-2d03-4c54-9cd9-35c26171b3f6@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
>> peterwn <peterwn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>> Those who try and argue that the GPL is unenforceable are in
>>> effect trying to argue that copyright law is unenforceable. No
>>> court will 'buy' that proposition.
>>
>> You haven't been following the JMRI case, have you?
>
> Tim, I think it would be nice if you maybe expanded on your point,
> even at the risk of opening yourself up to argument!
He won't, since it would just be self-defeating. Here, let me help him out:
[quote]
But Microsoft recognized software patents as the Achilles heel of Free
Software. This is more evident today with several running patent
lawsuits against Open Source developers. The JMRI case is notable since
it is a software patent suit against an individual Free Software
developer, and for its offensiveness: an Open Source developer's work, a
Java Model Railroad Interface, was integrated into a commercial product,
a model railroad throttle, and then the throttle's manufacturer brought
a patent suit against the very Open Source developer whose work he
capitalized upon. Without the fortunate participation of a pro-bono
attorney, the developer would have been defenseless. We should note that
the well of volunteer attorneys and defense funds for Open Source
developers is all too finite.
JMRI's developer countersued the throttle manufacturer for violating his
license. The developer's use of the Artistic license with its rather
shaky legal language, and an odd court ruling on that license, weakened
his countersuit. The case remains in court. The JMRI developer has since
switched to LGPL. His plight should be a warning to other developers:
you need a license with the strongest legal language that you can get to
make it effective, and to protect you from software patent holders, lest
unsavory businesses pull the same trick on you. Ask your attorney, but
my surmise is that LGPLv3 and GPLv3 are about as strong as you can get,
having been reviewed by the attorneys of dozens of major corporations,
the eminent Mr. Moglen, and his attorneys at the Software Freedom Law
Center.
[/quote]
http://perens.com/works/articles/State8Feb2008/
The full sorry story, straight from the horse's mouth:
[quote]
JMRI Defense: Our Story So Far
This page describes our efforts to protect our Open Source project from
attacks by a patent holder. He makes arguments in federal court to
justify his actions, and if he prevails, he will strike right at the
heart of the Open Source community. We are one of the first projects to
have to defend against bogus patent claims and protect its copyrighted
software and license. We certainly won't be the last. Here's our story.
JMRI is open-source software for model-railroaders. There's a separate
page that describes the history of the project, and gives further links.
"DecoderPro®" and "PanelPro™" are built on JMRI, and are popular tools
for programming locomotives and operating layouts. DecoderPro has been
around for several years.
Matt Katzer owns KAM Industries, a company that tries to sell model
railroad software. He's never contributed anything to the JMRI effort.
But that hasn't stopped him from taking JMRI intellectual property.
Matt Katzer and his company KAMIND Associates, Inc. are attacking the
rights of open source groups to enforce their copyrights and licenses.
If they prevail, the rights of open source groups like JMRI will be
significantly weakened, if not lost. We are breaking ground for open
source groups in federal court and establishing legal rights for open
source groups and their members. We need your help and donations to
succeed in this legal fight.
In the next sections we discuss Katzer's cybersquatting, enforcement of
bogus patents, copyright infringement and our fight in federal court.
[/quote]
http://jmri.sourceforge.net/k/updates.html
So the moral of the story is, don't use "Artistic License", but use a
license that protects against bogus claims made by patent trolls:
http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html (section 11).
--
K.
http://slated.org
.----
| 'When it comes to knowledge, "ownership" just doesn't make sense'
| ~ Cory Doctorow, The Guardian. http://tinyurl.com/22bgx8
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14:45:00 up 90 days, 12:20, 5 users, load average: 0.05, 0.30, 0.50
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