<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

> So we'll like to know if we have to pay any kind of Royalties for
> using DirectFB library. 

no. but you have to obey some rules implied by the (L)GPL. i will list
them here in short and simplyfied form. for details see:

http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/lesser.html

1. if you distribute binaries of DFB or any other (L)GPL programs you
must either deliver the source of these progs with it or hand over a
written permission to request the source per mailorder later. (this is
distributers responsibility). thus you must let the user know that
there are (L)GPLed programs in your settopbox.

2. if you link statically against DFB or any other (L)GPL library you
have to provide either the object files of your linking program or
the source code. (the user must have a chance to substitute your
version of DFB with a newer/bugfixed version.)

3. you must provide everything that is needed to make this relinking
possible in the first place (i.e. Makefile, probably the linker
itself [which migth be under GPL itself, so here the real fun
starts ;-) ]).

to avoid these troubles i suggest to at least provide a dynamically
linked version of your program. the user can then just copy the
new directfb.so over the old one.

either way you do not need to provide source to your own programs,
though it would be nice if you did.

> We're concern about the algorithms used to decode multimedia formats
> (TrueType, JPEG, PNG, GIF)... 
> 
> Do we have to pay to use them?

basicly no, but study the licenses of the libraries for their rules.

hope this gets you started.
clemens

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