Re: gnome-libs failure in gnome-metadata.c

[Jason L Tibbitts III <tibbs hpc uh edu>]

>>>>> "Tom" == Tom Tromey <tromey@cygnus.com> writes:

Tom> Yes, gnome-metadata assumes DB 1.85.

I did manage to get it to compile by changing the include lines to
reference db_185.h.  Unfortunately I haven't had time to build everything
else to make sure that it works.

Tom> DB 2.0 might be current, but its license makes it inadvisable for
Tom> Gnome.  It doesn't play well with an LGPL library.

I can see why a distribution wouldn't want to ship it; the license looks
odd.  I read it as letting you do anything you want, including putting it
in a distribution, as long as the software in the distribution which is not
freely redistributable does not use DB.  But I'm no lawyer and RMS-style
politicians probably have other takes on the issue.

In any case, there's no prohibition against distributing source that just
happens to compile using DB.  It would be a bad thing to penalize me (by
making software fail to build) just because I chose to install it.

Someone could always ask Sleepycat.  They seem flexible.

For the record, here's some useful info from the DB faq.

 - J<

31.Does DB 2.0 have the same license as DB 1.85? 

     Here's the non-commercial license that we're using for the Berkeley DB 2.0
     release. It's different from the one we used for DB 1.85. Generally speaking, the
     difference is that the license for DB 2.0 requires that software using DB 2.0 be
     freely redistributable if DB is going to be redistributed. If Berkeley DB is not
     being redistributed in any way, no commercial license is ever required. Please
     see the license for more specific information. 

     If the new license is a problem for you, please call or send email -- we're trying
     hard to make sure that folks already using DB 1.85 are not hurt by our
     modifying the license. (We've already agreed to do one-off licenses for a couple
     of groups in order that they can continue to use Berkeley DB version 2 in the
     same way that they used DB 1.85.) 

     We also offer support contracts and standard licensing terms for groups that
     want pre-built libraries/binaries, technical support and/or to use Berkeley DB
     in more conventional commercial ways. 


36.Do I have to license DB to use it in Perl scripts? 

     No. The Berkeley DB license requires that software that uses Berkeley DB be
     freely redistributable. In the case of Perl, that software is Perl, and not your
     scripts. Any Perl scripts that you write are your property, including scripts that
     make use of Berkeley DB. Neither the Perl license nor the Berkeley DB license
     place any restriction on what you may do with them.