Re: Binary-only firmware covered by the GPL?

[Humberto Massa]

Oh, man, it seems that I *must* repeat myself one more time, at least
to see if I'm not in everyone's killfile :-)

@ 30/03/2004 11:19 : wrote Pavel Machek :

> Hi!
Hi!
> > > #include <hallo.h> * David Schwartz [Thu, Mar 25 2004,
> > > 04:41:23PM]:
> > > > > IMHO code that can be compiled would probably be the
> > > > > preferred form of the work.
> > > > You are seriously arguing that the obfuscated binary of the 
> > > > firmware is the preferred form of the firmware for the
> > > > purpose of making modifications to it?!
I don't know if that's what /he/ is arguing, but *I* am arguing that 
in the cases I've seen here and in debian-legal, we have the following 
circumstances (the qla2xxx/ql2100_fw.c canonical example):
* the file in question (and its brothers and cousins) have the 
following structure IIRC:
	+ GPL license comment-header
	+ some includes?
	+ the firmware in c-blob format or unsigned char fw[] = ....
	+ nothing else.
* as the file is clearly marked by the copyright holder as being 
_distributed under the terms of the GPL_ and no other format is given 
to modify the fw[], at least *legally* is MHO that any 
recipient/redistributor of the file _can_ and _must_ consider the file 
in *that* format as the preferred form for modification (pf4m) *and*, 
considering it the source code, follow the directions of the GPL in 
respect to modification and redistribution.
* the /status quo/ obtained by observation of the previous item 
prevails _until somebody proves_ that the fw[] = {} is *not* the 
source code; this, usually, can be proven only by confession, i.e., 
the original copyright holder *comes out and says:* "hmmm, this is not 
the source code". Notice that the copyright holder maintaining silence 
is _not_ confession.
* in this case (copyright holder confesses it's not the source code) 
applied to the examples in casu, i.e., firmware, the kernel people 
cannot distribute the binary blob *inside the kernel tree*, but can do 
it separately _if the copyright holder grants a license_ to.
* even so, Debian could not distribute it.

> > > Yes, the driver authors PREFERS to make the changes on the C
> > > source code, he never has to modify the firmware. Exactly what
> > > the GPL requests, where is your problem?
> >
> > But the firmware didn't appear out of thin air - someone wrote it
> >  somehow. If that's using a hex editor or inside the C code
> > doesn't matter, but most likely they used some other language
> > like either C or assembly (no, not all firmware is written using
> > assembly), and there are cases where some are in fact written
> > using a hex editor but I can't remember any that has been for the
> > last 30 or so years but I'm sure there has been cases where there
> > hasn't been a working assembler.

But there are cases, even if you don't know of them. And this is the 
case that has to be taken in account when we start *presuming* things, 
at least legally, IMHO.
> If my code contains picture of human, do I have to provide his DNA,
> too? Pavel
>
> (runs away)


--
best regards,M
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