[prev in list] [next in list] [prev in thread] [next in thread] 

List:       kde-promo
Subject:    Re: [kde-promo] What is the real story ?
From:       "A.J. Venter" <aj () outkastsolutions ! co ! za>
Date:       2009-01-12 13:53:58
Message-ID: 868cfe70901120553w2426c04ejdfb311d3a1b99318 () mail ! gmail ! com
[Download RAW message or body]

On Mon, Jan 12, 2009 at 3:46 PM, Saurav Goswami <krishnasut@gmail.com> wrote:
> I feel that KDE is not purely free software. Oh i know that its codes are
> free !
> But it uses QT which is not free !
> So i feel something hesitation to use KDE !
> But i like gnome although KDE is more better than Gnome.
> So i am in confusion.
> Plz tell me what is the real story behind the screen !
This is out of date, in the past, there was  period when QT was
non-free, then it was put under the QPL which WAS free, but not GPL
compatible. Since then it's been dual licensed under both a commercial
licensed and the GPL. KDE development is done only on the GPL version
and is therefore fully free.

There is no code differences between the two licensed versions, but
the commercial license allows people to create non-free QT
applications. Much as it is possible to create a non-free application
that runs on KDE (since the KDELIBS are LGPL licensed). This does not
make it non-free in any way, it simply circumvents the GPL's attempts
to prevent non-free programs from using QT (for a price).
It is in fact, in practical terms then, somewhat better than the BSD
licenses -which allows anybody to make a non-free program from it
(like MacOS was made from FreeBSD) without anything reducing this - at
least you need money to make a non-free QT program.

Ciao
A.J.
-- 
A.J. Venter
Tel.: +27 21 554 5059
Fax: +27 11 252 9197
Outkast Solutions IT
www.outkastsolutions.co.za
A division of Global Pact Trading Pty Ltd.

www.silentcoder.co.za - Blog
scartoonz.silentcoder.co.za - ScarToonz webcomic
 
_______________________________________________
This message is from the kde-promo mailing list.

Visit https://mail.kde.org/mailman/listinfo/kde-promo to unsubscribe, set digest on \
or temporarily stop your subscription.


[prev in list] [next in list] [prev in thread] [next in thread]