On Wed, Nov 27, 2013 at 2:14 PM, Alan G Isaac <alan.is...@gmail.com> wrote: > On 11/27/2013 3:43 PM, Dirk Eddelbuettel wrote: >> This is_embedding_ as RPy2 embeds R from an outer Python application (just >> like my RInside project does for C++). > > I don't think introducing a new, undefined term helps clarify things. > For a good discussion see > http://www.law.washington.edu/lta/swp/law/derivative.html > > Or if your approach has been usefully discussed, I'd appreciate > a pointer to it. But I would think that any useful definition > of "embed" would become somethink like "statically links to".
There's no meaningful legal distinction between static and dynamic linking. And pretty much everyone agrees that if you do either, for any library with a unique interface (and R's C interface, for better or worse, is VERY unique ;-)), then your code can only be distributed under GPL-compatible terms. I don't know what Dirk meant by embedding, but I can't see how it would matter anyway; the conclusion is the same either way. rpy2 can legally be re-licensed under any GPL-compatible terms, including BSD. (At least, it can if everyone who's ever contributed any copyrightable code agrees to make the change. I'm not sure if I still have any code in rpy2, but FWIW I'm happy to relicense my contributions under GPLv2+ or any BSD variant.) Any code using rpy2 will have to be distributed under GPL-compatible terms regardless. The only times rpy2's license may make a difference is (1) if rpy2 stays with the AGPL and thus imposes the extra Affero restriction, or (2) if rpy2 goes BSD then it may allow more direct code-sharing between rpy2 and other projects like IPython (as mentioned). These are the the only things open for discussion AFAICT. -n ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Rapidly troubleshoot problems before they affect your business. Most IT organizations don't have a clear picture of how application performance affects their revenue. With AppDynamics, you get 100% visibility into your Java,.NET, & PHP application. Start your 15-day FREE TRIAL of AppDynamics Pro! http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/clk?id=84349351&iu=/4140/ostg.clktrk _______________________________________________ rpy-list mailing list rpy-list@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/rpy-list
