RE: Java Versus gtk

[<martyn 2 russell bt com>]

> > Unless I'm missing something, you don't need special license for
working
> > on Windows.  GNU GPL doesn't permit weird restrictions such as strict
> > binding to a fixed OS, does it?

AFAIK, no.  Even if it did, it operates under Sun's OS, Windows and
Linux. 

> So maybe you are missing something.
> http://www.trolltech.com/products/licensing.html
> "Qt Free Editions
> <http://www.trolltech.com/products/qt/freelicense.html> are not
> available on Windows"
>
>
> And:
> http://www.trolltech.com/products/qt/windows.html
> "Qt/Windows can be used with Microsoft Visual C++ 6.0, Visual Studio
> .Net, or Borland Builder 5 (bcc32 5.5)."

First of all, GTK is not GPLd, it is LGPLd which makes it available to
proprietary software houses; but because it is free, some corporation
worry about it.  From a corporation's point of view, if you sell an
application using the GTK, you are not paying for it, so the money stops
at you selling the application.  Some companies would prefer to pay
money for a license because then they have paid for someone to be liable
when something goes wrong.  This has affected IBM and many other big
companies using it though :).

Second, from what I read recently and can remember, I thought QTs
license says that you can use it personally for free, and corporately
you need to pay.  Plus if you use it on Windows and it does use the MFC,
you would also need to pay Micro$oft licensing costs.

Java has probably the most established and agreed software license
because it is used quite commonly.

Regards,
Martyn