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118 lines
4.4 KiB
HTML
118 lines
4.4 KiB
HTML
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<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0//EN">
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<html>
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<head>
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<meta HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
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<meta NAME="AUTHOR" CONTENT="pme@gcc.gnu.org (Phil Edwards)">
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<meta NAME="KEYWORDS" CONTENT="libstdc++, license, licence">
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<meta NAME="DESCRIPTION" CONTENT="Copying restrictions for libstdc++.">
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<meta NAME="GENERATOR" CONTENT="vi and eight fingers">
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<title>libstdc++-v3 copying</title>
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<link REL=StyleSheet HREF="../lib3styles.css">
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</head>
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<body>
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<h1 CLASS="centered"><a name="top">Licenses for the Library</a></h1>
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<p><strong>As long as this sentence is in place, this page isn't
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official. It is still experimental if you are reading this.</strong></p>
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<p>There are two licenses affecting GNU libstdc++-v3: one for the code, and
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one for the documentation. Here we will describe both of them, and try
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to answer some of the common questions. If you have more questions, ask the
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FSF or the gcc-help mailing list; the person writing this page is a
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programmer, not a lawyer.
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</p>
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<hr>
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<h2>The Code: Runtime GPL</h2>
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<p>The source code of libstdc++-v3 is distributed under version 2 of the
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<a href="COPYING">GNU General Public License</a>, with the so-called
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"runtime exception," as follows (or see any header or
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implementation file):
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<pre>
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As a special exception, you may use this file as part of a free software
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library without restriction. Specifically, if other files instantiate
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templates or use macros or inline functions from this file, or you compile
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this file and link it with other files to produce an executable, this
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file does not by itself cause the resulting executable to be covered by
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the GNU General Public License. This exception does not however
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invalidate any other reasons why the executable file might be covered by
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the GNU General Public License.
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</pre>
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</p>
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<p>Hopefully that text is self-explanatory. If it isn't, you need to speak
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to your lawyer, or the Free Software Foundation. I am not a legal expert.
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I do not even play one on television.
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</p>
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<!-- Most of the Q&A's are based on, paraphrased from, and outright stolen
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from this thread:
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http://gcc.gnu.org/ml/libstdc++/2000-q2/subjects.html#00050
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-->
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<p><strong>Q: So any program which uses libstdc++ falls under the GPL?</strong>
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<br>A: <strong>No.</strong> The special exception permits use of the
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library in proprietary applications.
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</p>
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<p><strong>Q: How is that different from the GNU {Lesser,Library}
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GPL?</strong>
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<!-- Quoting Jason Merrill from the thread above: -->
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<br>A: The LGPL requires that users be able to replace the LGPL code with a
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modified version; this is trivial if the library in question is a C
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shared library. But there's no way to make that work with C++, where
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much of the library consists of inline functions and templates, which
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are expanded inside the code that uses the library. So to allow people
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to replace the library code, someone using the library would have to
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distribute their own source, rendering the LGPL equivalent to the GPL.
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</p>
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<p><strong>Q: I see. So, what restrictions <em>are</em> there on
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programs that use the library?</strong>
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<br>A: None. We encourage such programs to be released as open source,
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but we won't punish you or sue you if you choose otherwise.
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</p>
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<!-- Someone would probably shoot me if I uncommented this.
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<p><strong>Q: I heard that the startup code for libstdc++-v3 detects
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what license the program uses, and makes my program crash if it isn't
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an open source license! Is that true?</strong>
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<br>A: You are paranoid and insane. Please calm down and try switching
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to decaf.
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</p>
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-->
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<hr>
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<h2>The Docs: FDL</h2>
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<p>The documentation shipped with the library and made available over the
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web, including the pages generated from source comments, are copyrighted
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by the Free Software Foundation, and placed under
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the <a href="COPYING.DOC">GNU Free Documentation License version 1.1</a>.
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There are no Front-Cover Texts, no Back-Cover Texts, and
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<!-- as far as I know -->
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no Invariant Sections.
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</p>
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<p>If you plan on making copies of the documentation, please let us know.
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We can probably offer suggestions.
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</p>
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<!-- ####################################################### -->
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<hr>
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<P CLASS="fineprint"><em>
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Comments and suggestions are welcome, and may be sent to
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<a href="mailto:libstdc++@gcc.gnu.org">the mailing list</a>.
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</em></p>
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</body>
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</html>
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