[Open-graphics] Definition of Open Hardware

[Attila Kinali]

On Wed, 4 Oct 2006 10:26:32 +0200
Lourens Veen <lourens at rainbowdesert.net> wrote:

> Well, there is this little issue of an Open Hardware Foundation being 
> set up, without anyone knowing what open hardware is and what should or 
> shouldn't be supported by that foundation. If I were to donate to that 
> fuondation, I'd like to know that it's not going to spend that money on 
> creating proprietary hardware.

touché
 

> This was more intended to be background information. The free software 
> definition includes the freedom to use the programme for any purpose. 
> The GPL, being a copyright licence, does not cover that freedom, 
> because copyright does not restrict use. In fact, the GPL explicitly 
> says that use is outside of its scope. In fact, laws can change (and 
> intellectual property laws can be bought it seems) so that we can not 
> take for granted that some right that is not limited by a law today 
> will still be there tomorrow. Still, it can't hurt to know a bit about 
> the legal landscape.

Ok, i missunderstood you then. I agree that we need to know
what is legally possible, but we should not spend too much
time on it.

> > Please also note, that there are very few legal problems in the
> > OSS world. I've only heard about a dozen or so legal skirmishes
> > in the last 7 years. Most of them about usage of a name or logo.
> > Very few were about copyright (and all but two about a company
> > breaking the GPL)
> 
> http://www.gpl-violations.org/about.html#history

ack

> > We neither need examples nor usecases. They'll apear by themselves
> > when the time is right.
> 
> Or when it's too late: people complaining about their donations to the 
> OHF being spent on things they don't agree with, open HDL being ripped 
> off, and so on.

Hmm... people will always complain, but yes, we shouldn't ask for
it either.

				Attila Kinali

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