Re: [Boost-users] Boost License Question

From: Sebastian Redl (sebastian.redl_at_[hidden])
Date: 2006-03-02 02:34:53

Rene Rivera wrote:

>These conversations always under the AINAL disclaimer...
>
>Glenn Thorne wrote:
>  
>
>>I want to use several of the Boost libraries in a project I'm working on and 
>>am a little concerned over a potential conflict between the website 
>>information and the Boost license language.
>>
>>On the website it mentions that the license is "not viral" but the language 
>>in the Boost license states that ".. and to permit third-parties to whom the 
>>Software is furnished to do so, all subject to the following: The copyright 
>>notices in the Software and this entire statement, including the above 
>>license grant, this restriction and the following disclaimer, must be 
>>included in all copies of the Software, in whole or in part, and all 
>>derivative works of the Software, unless such copies or derivative works are 
>>solely in the form of machine-executable object code generated by a source 
>>language processor."
>>
>>It seems to me that since derivative works must be subject to the license, 
>>any code I link with the Boost libraries would also be subject to the Boost 
>>license.  Am I reading this correctly or is there a different 
>>interpretation?
>>    
>>
>
>That isn't a derivative work of Boost.
>
Yes, it is, at least as far as the GPL's understanding of derivative 
work goes. However, Glenn misunderstood the license. It doesn't require 
that your derivative work is subject to the license, merely that it 
includes a copy of the license text with the source code should you 
choose to provide that, solely for the purpose of information about the 
Boost part of the program.

The license is in fact so permissive that your own modifications to the 
Boost code itself wouldn't have to be under the Boost license. (Though 
the original code parts would have to be, so that's useless in practice..)

Sebastian Redl