Re: [Discuss-gnuradio] Why Isn't GNU Radio Used More?

[Jeff Brower]

Alexander-

Well said.

I would add an additional comment about "Linux as a model" for GNU Radio.  
Linux exists at least in part because of
widespread developer anger with Microsoft in the 1990s.  Guys like Ballmer 
simply couldn't think straight and failed
to respect developers' time and effort.  Linux solved that problem but seems to 
have reached limits, such as desktop
applications.  It's less an economic model and more a model for global 
cooperation and standardization in a
fundamental area of software too important to be left to short-term oriented 
executives.

What I think might translate for GNU Radio is to find ways to support more 
types of platforms.  What about a small
USRP for smart phones and tablets?  Would that draw in more developers?  A 
"platform broadening" might also make sense
from a revenue standpoint:  small open source initiatives need revenue streams 
to grow and be able to afford things
such as extensive documentation.  For GNU Radio, this means hardware.

-Jeff

> On Mon, May 9, 2011 at 20:08, Philip Balister <address@hidden> wrote:
>> On 05/09/2011 11:57 AM, Michael Dickens wrote:
>>>
>>> Intellectual Property: Many people / companies view the GPL as being
>>> incompatible with IP -- and, whether true or not, this perception is
>>> certainly an issue. Â To make progress here, maybe GNU Radio could take
>>> Ettus' UHD dual-license approach, if that is still possible? Â I don't know
>>> if the FSF (the copyright owner) would allow such a change; further, even
>>> with that change, I think a separate company would need to be setup to deal
>>> with the non-GPL license. Â I think having a less-restrictive license than
>>> the GPL would encourage adoption of GNU Radio in places where IP is an
>>> issue. - MLD
>
> That's true - people don't like GPL and a good library has to do
> something about it.
>
>> I don't see any point trying to appease the free software is anti IP crowd.
>> They will just invent new excuses. It is our job to help these people
>> understand how things really work.
>>
>> I'm also less inclined to contribute to projects using BSD style licenses
>> since I see no benefit to me, to contribute to a project that can be used
>> for profit by people who do not plan to share the code with their customers.
>
> I believe that a library should use LGPL instead of a "clean" GPL.
> Then all contributions to the library are shared with the community,
> while people are still allowed to build their black boxes.
> Re-licensing of GnuRadio as LGPL would be a big step towards much
> higher popularity.
>
>> Anyway, the largest generator of dollars in the free software world is the
>> Linux kernel, and that is GPL. So economics suggest GPL is the way to go.
>
> That's not true, Linux kernel itself doesn't generate $$$.
> And to say truth - Linux kernel allows you (1) to load binary
> proprietary drivers without open-sourcing them and (2) to use it with
> user-space programs without open-sourcing them. And this makes Linux
> kernel such an awesome thing.
> GnuRadio must follow this model if it wants to be considered seriously.
>
> --
> Regards,
> Alexander Chemeris.
>
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