Subject: Re: Using Cygnus tools to deliver closed software.
From: Fergus Henderson <[email-masked]>
To: DJ Delorie <[email-masked]>
Cc: [email-masked], [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 18 Mar 1999 07:36:12 +1100

On 17-Mar-1999, DJ Delorie <[email-masked]> wrote:
> 
> > If you really want to use the Cygnus compiler and Gnu POSIX
> > libraries to produce closed software, why not simply use the Cygnus
> > compiler on Linux?
> 
> Because that won't result in programs that run under Windows, which is
> often (sadly) a key marketing point.
> 
> It's not the *use* of gnu tools that causes the problems.  It's the
> fact that a program built *for* cygwin *includes* GPL'd cygwin sources
> (see other debate for more info :).  Programs built for Linux don't
> include any gnu code (libc is a shared library),

This is not quite true: programs built for Linux *do* include GNU code,
even though libc is a shared library.  In particular, they include code
from libgcc.a and from crt*.o.  It's just that this code is covered by
special exceptions which mean that programs which include this code
don't have to be licensed under the GPL.

> If you link a Linux program statically,
> then you'll have the same problem with Linux as you do with Cygwin.

No, you won't.  You must abide by section 6 of the LGPL, which means
among other things that you need to provide relinkable object code,
but you don't need to provide source code.

-- 
Fergus Henderson <[email-masked]>  |  "I have always known that the pursuit
WWW: <http://www.cs.mu.oz.au/~fjh>  |  of excellence is a lethal habit"
PGP: finger [email-masked]        |     -- the last words of T. S. Garp.

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