RE: [ECOS] RedBoot banner

["Chris Zimman" <czimman at bloomberg dot com>]

> Under section 2(c) of the GPL it isn't really an option:
> 
>     c) If the modified program normally reads commands interactively
>     when run, you must cause it, when started running for such
>     interactive use in the most ordinary way, to print or display an
>     announcement including an appropriate copyright notice and a
>     notice that there is no warranty (or else, saying that you provide
>     a warranty) and that users may redistribute the program under
>     these conditions, and telling the user how to view a copy of this
>     License.  (Exception: if the Program itself is interactive but
>     does not normally print such an announcement, your work based on
>     the Program is not required to print an announcement.)
> 
> And of course RedBoot does print that sort of announcement (copyrights)
> and has done from the outset. It's been strictly incorrect for RedBoot not
> to comply with 2(c) for as long as it has (since the RHEPL->GPL+exception
> switch). It does seem an appropriate thing for RedBoot to say too.

I don't understand your read of this.  By my read, section 2 deals with
modified software.  
This is saying that if a program is a derivative of a program that does print
license info, then it's required to do so as well.
Given that Redboot isn't really a derivative of anything that (AFAIK) does
so, I don't understand how it's required to.

U-Boot is also GPL'd and doesn't print any license info when it starts up.

> Of course due to the exception at the end, I would not expect an eCos
> user's own interactive application (not related to RedBoot) to do the
> same as RedBoot.

Given that Redboot is just eCos w/o interrupts enabled and some bits of menu
around it, I don't understand how you can support this is one case and not
the other.

--Chris



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