Re: About GPL and proprietary software

On 01/09/2003 10:07 Kaarel wrote:
> [snip] Licensing is quite difficult to understad (at least for me) yet a
> very important aspect of software development. I don't intend to ruine
> anybodys day I just want a small discussion which in the end would
> explain the cases when the licensing aspect of these two concrete
> products will play an important role in developing software.


With the withdrawal of LGPL from MySQL 4.x, you might find yourself either
having to GPL your application or buy a commercial license if your
application has their client libraries compiled in. About 18 months ago,
when I started designing the ERP product I'm currently working on, I
rejected MySQL on purely technical grounds (and that was compared to
PostgreSQL 7.1!). So far, that seems a very good decision. My application
is basically designed to use PostgreSQL (although if someone offered me
enough money, I expect I could port it Oracle or DB/2) and it's BSD-style
license avoids the possibilty of me or my clients having to pay a $400
licence fee to use a "free" program.

--
Paul Thomas
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