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List:       kde
Subject:    Re: GNOME Desktop Project
From:       Sirtaj Singh Kang <ssk () physics ! unimelb ! edu ! au>
Date:       1997-08-19 1:14:49
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On Mon, 18 Aug 1997, Bernd Johannes Wuebben wrote:
[snippety..]
> Needless to say, that we are currently investigating our options as to
> how we can prevent this looting from taking place.

Well, I prefer not to think of it that way. But consider this.

You feel our code is not GPL because it uses non-GPL code. This being your
raison d'etre for the free-software equivalent of behaving like a
monopolistic corporation and running us into the ground by buying us out
(freely using our code)... it is surprising that you invoke the same GPL
to use our code!

I believe this to be an unusually shameless form of hypocrisy. I have no
problem with anyone using my code, as long as it is not to attempt to
destroy a project into which I have put so much effort and man-months of
hard work. 

The GPL doesn't prevent it, but even if it did, I will not ask you to
stop. But that doesn't make it decent. 

So I will, along with hopefully like minded KDE developers, continue to do
my best, going to try to believe you have everyone's best interest in
mind.. and hope you will cooperate with us in the way that we KDE
developers and users have cooperated with users and developers of free
software all over the world. 

> On a personal level, let me say, that your behaviour hurts very much. 
[..snip]

ditto. But I will not try to get in the way of you folks doing damn well
as you please. This letter is going to be my first and last expression of
disappointment with the self-nominated bearers of the Free Software
standard. 

-Taj.

Sirtaj S. Kang       taj@kde.org         ssk@physics.unimelb.edu.au
School of Physics    Univ of Melbourne   http://www.ph.unimelb.edu.au/~ssk/

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