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Wireshark-dev: Re: [Wireshark-dev] GPL license question

From: Ulf Lamping <ulf.lamping@xxxxxx>
Date: Thu, 12 Jul 2007 20:08:12 +0200
Sebastien Tandel schrieb:
Phillip Paradis wrote:
One might be able to do as Nvidia/ATI et. al. do with their drivers.

Just to mention that it won't be possible anymore to load a non-GPL
module into the kernel after the 1st January 2008. It seems that kernel
people (probably assisted by lawyers) have decided that non-GPL kernel
module infringes the GPL license. ;)

http://thread.gmane.org/gmane.linux.kernel/475654/focus=47579
Well, to anyone in this discussion - this discussion about circumventing the GPL really annoys me.

If you don't want to agree with the terms of the GPL, just go away - it's that simple. You'll try to gain the benefits of other peoples work, without giving anything back. No one forces you to write a dissector for Wireshark and we don't want to see it in any other form than the GPL - if you want to release it to someone else. Feel free to write your own analyzer or buy a commercial analyzer product and the corresponding developer kit for it and do your stuff this way.

And to be clear about that point: If people will start to write closed source dissectors to be plugged into Wireshark, we as the Wireshark developers will probably find a way to prevent it - probably not using the legal way, but in effect.

If you'll try to circumvent the GPL, you'll very certainly will make people angry about it. People (including myself) have spend a reasonable amount of time to build Wireshark to be how it is today. Choosing the GPL wasn't done by mistake, it was intended ...

Regards, ULFL