Re: Mathworks-hosted GPL'd software

[Judd Storrs]

On Mon, Feb 15, 2010 at 3:43 PM, Jaroslav Hajek <address@hidden> wrote:
> :D Come on, you must see that this is a pure nonsense. You
> accidentally (or intentionally) omitted the important point
> 3.5) Make all OpenBSD contributors and hosting servers get their
> OpenBSD sources from my public place.

Did you omit the part where the Mathworks is requiring exclusive
redistribution rights over user files on FX and forbids independent or
secondary redistribution? Maybe I missed that part.

> Without this, I could not of course sue anybody, because I distributed
> nothing to them. Under the copyright law, it *does* matter whom you
> got the code from.

It may be different over there and I'm certainly not a lawyer, but I'm
pretty sure that in the US you cannot sue for theft or misuse of
someone else's property. If you think your neighbor smashed your
friends car, *you* don't get to go to court and sue you neighbour for
damages, your friend does. Only the copyright holder or assignees have
legal standing to pursue action in court (
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standing_%28law%29 ). Without copyright
you cannot sue for infringement. Period. End of story. (inb4 "...but
copyright isn't property! Outrage!")

The only grounds for action Mathworks has would be ToS violation. ToS
violation is not a question about copyright licensing.

I don't speak Czech and I'm not a lawyer, but your translation of the
quoted seems to me to relate to permitting copyright transfer. The BSD
license is not a copyright transfer. As with the GPL, the BSD reserves
all rights for the copyright holder.


--judd