I'm not a lawyer, but here's my few words:
>The i2o Bus: A Conspiracy Against Free Software?
>
>Bruce Perens (bruce@pixar.com)
>Wed, 16 Jul 97 11:40 PDT
>
>
>Check out http://www.i2osig.org/ "i2o" is a developing "non-proprietary"
>standard for high-performance computer peripherals. Unfortunately, it's a
>closed standard, it requires a NDA, and you need a license to develop
>software for it. Their terms are:
>
> Membership is $5000/year.
> You can't develop software or hardware for it without being a
member.
Hmm, seems like violation of some basic rights... I can write any code
I want - nobody has right to check it. And if my software accidentaly
works on i2o - why should I care?
Take it other way. Do I have right to create my own piece of wire?
Certainly yes. And who's going to stop me if I'm going to plug that
wire into i2o? And, that wire may even do something usefull in i2o
bus! And now, I'll create some board. Who's going to stop me?
Accidentaly it works when plugged in i2o bus.
> You can't disclose source code for your drivers.
Ok - but you still may write your code so that binary is readable (
replace /* */ with printf( " " ) ).
> You must stop making hardware or software for it if you lose
membership.
How they are going to enforce this?
> Members can vote out other members.
>
>The backers of this are Microsoft, Novell, Hewlet-Packard, and NETFrame.
>It looks as if the i2o agreements are deliberately written to exclude free
>software.
>
>I suspect that if i2o peripherals become popular, free operating systems
>will be locked out from running on PC hardware.
I do not thing so. Someone will guess specification and publish it. Or
someone will hack their servers and publish it. Or someone will take
group of lawyers and make their agreements ilegal.
>Please take a look at this and give me a reality check.
>
> Thanks
>
> Bruce Perens
> Debian Project Leader
-- I'm really pavel@atrey.karlin.mff.cuni.cz. Pavel Look at http://atrey.karlin.mff.cuni.cz/~pavel/ ;-).