Bug#692728: Possible GPL violation: Geogebra

[Hendrik Weimer]

Bruce Perens <bruce at perens.com> writes:

> On 01/29/2014 09:57 AM, Hendrik Weimer wrote:
>> If *all* languages are equally stored in a separate file, then
>> removing this file will stop the program from working.
> Another file could be substituted for it, one created using a
> clean-room process so that we are certain it's not derivative, and the
> program would again operate and emit proper messages. So, we can't
> really use the fact that removing the file breaks the program to prove
> that all such files must be derivative of the program.

Oh, I think we're both talking about two different issues here. I'm not
saying that language files are always a derivative of the source code of
the program. Rather, I'm saying that the final product that is being
distributed is a derivative of both the source code *and* the actual
language file that is included in the distribution.

So, assuming the source code is GPLed, it's fine to distribute a product
based on the source code and a GPL-compatible language file (say, BSD-3)
because the product as a whole can be distributed under the
GPL. However, if the language file carries a GPL-incompatible license
(such as CC-BY-SA), the resulting product cannot be distributed in a
legal way.

Hendrik