Bartosz Fenski aka fEnIo wrote:
I think that many programs from OpenSource world are made via reverse
engineering, and there is no problem with including them in Debian.
Consider the most important. Linux kernel. Many drivers are made this
way.
regards
fEnIo
Don't forget SAMBA - it's a reverse-engineer of one of the key
intellectual properties of one of the richest, and most sue-happy
companies in the entire world. If Microsoft could sue the SAMBA team
(and therefore Debian) over copyright or patent infringement, surely
they would have done so by now?
I think it is fair to say that if SAMBA is not considered a risk to
Debian, neither should any other code reverse-engineered for purposes of
compatibility. What may be an issue though is if libfasttrack-gift has
infringed copyright by directly copying code from fastrack, rather than
by black-box reverse engineering.
--
Lewis Jardine
IANAL, IANADD
