ONWARD TO GPL 2.5
ONWARD TO GPL 2.5
Dear Linux Magazine Reader,
We’ve had another lively month in the debate between the Linux kernel developers, led by Linus Torvalds, and the Free Software Foundation (FSF), led by Richard Stallman,
on the proposed changes to the Gnu Public License (GPL). Some prominent kernel developers put out a position paper asking the FSF to “…abandon the current GPLv3 process before it becomes too late.” Linus did not sign the paper, although his objections to GPLv3 are well known. The FSF then posted their own paper, which they said would clarify “recent misleading information.” The discussion boils down to provisions regarding patents and digital rights management (DRM). But every time I hear about this debate, I am taken back to a presentation by FSF attorney Eben Moglen at the 2005 San Fransisco LinuxWorld. The talk was just prior to the start of the approval process. The purpose of his talk was to define the approval process and the timetable; the details of the first GPLv3 draft were not known publicly at the time.
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
US / Canada
UK / Australia
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Two Local Privilege Escalation Flaws Discovered in Linux
Qualys researchers have discovered two local privilege escalation vulnerabilities that allow hackers to gain root privileges on major Linux distributions.
-
New TUXEDO InfinityBook Pro Powered by AMD Ryzen AI 300
The TUXEDO InfinityBook Pro 14 Gen10 offers serious power that is ready for your business, development, or entertainment needs.
-
Danish Ministry of Digital Affairs Transitions to Linux
Another major organization has decided to kick Microsoft Windows and Office to the curb in favor of Linux.
-
Linux Mint 20 Reaches EOL
With Linux Mint 20 at its end of life, the time has arrived to upgrade to Linux Mint 22.
-
TuxCare Announces Support for AlmaLinux 9.2
Thanks to TuxCare, AlmaLinux 9.2 (and soon version 9.6) now enjoys years of ongoing patching and compliance.
-
Go-Based Botnet Attacking IoT Devices
Using an SSH credential brute-force attack, the Go-based PumaBot is exploiting IoT devices everywhere.
-
Plasma 6.5 Promises Better Memory Optimization
With the stable Plasma 6.4 on the horizon, KDE has a few new tricks up its sleeve for Plasma 6.5.
-
KaOS 2025.05 Officially Qt5 Free
If you're a fan of independent Linux distributions, the team behind KaOS is proud to announce the latest iteration that includes kernel 6.14 and KDE's Plasma 6.3.5.
-
Linux Kernel 6.15 Now Available
The latest Linux kernel is now available with several new features/improvements and the usual bug fixes.
-
Microsoft Makes Surprising WSL Announcement
In a move that might surprise some users, Microsoft has made Windows Subsystem for Linux open source.