On 26 Mar 2006, Raul Miller told this: > The ambiguity is in the resolution's interpretation of the quoted > policy: > > ... must not require a package outside of _main_ for > compilation or execution ... > > Does no-operation or substandard operation satisfy requirements for > execution?
Well, yes. Consider the case that I write up a compiler for a new language in C++ or ruby. Can I put this compiler in main? Even if there is no public repository of code in this new language? My sense is yes, a compiler does not need the presence of code in order to be free -- as long as the license of the code itself is free. Should this change if I were to put code out there in the new language under a non-free license? I think not. Should things change again if I put freely licensed code on a web page? If I packaged that code for Debian? In my opinion, no. What if it was not a compiler, but an emulator of a virtual machine? Until there is code that can run on the virtual machine, there is nothing for the emulator to show. ndiswrapper seems to fall into similar situation: /usr/sbin/ndiswrapper -i filename.inf /usr/sbin/ndiswrapper -l /usr/sbin/ndiswrapper -m depmod -a modprobe ndiswrapper Looks very similar to a tool chain invocation: compile, link, install. The only argument I have seen so far seems to imply that I can't package up new emulators or compilers unless I also provide free source code for these to process, I am not sure I think that expands freedom in any tangible manner. manoj -- "Language shapes the way we think, and determines what we can think about." Whorf Manoj Srivastava <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> <http://www.debian.org/%7Esrivasta/> 1024D/BF24424C print 4966 F272 D093 B493 410B 924B 21BA DABB BF24 424C -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]