Reply to post: Re: Author rescinds GPL license retroactivly (yes he can do that)

Oracle exec: Open-source vendors locking down licences proves 'they were never really open'

ltgerome

Re: Author rescinds GPL license retroactivly (yes he can do that)

You have a member of the legal profession responding to you right now (USA). Code licensed under the GPL, BSD, etc have not been placed in the public domain. Believe whatever conspiracy you wish however.

I really do not give a shit if you don't believe me. Insinuate that I'm a liar again if you want to catch a libel case.

Read the book yourself: https://www.amazon.com/Open-Source-Licensing-Software-Intellectual/dp/0131487876

> That, in turn, would make all the references to the public domain that occur in law and all the mentions of the concept that have ever been made in court cases, a waste of breath.

You rest your argument on your completely ignorant notion that OSS licensed software has been dedicated to the Public Domain. It has not.

However, any unsupported "promises" written on the pieces of paper that hold the license terms, indeed, are generally NOT worth the paper they are printed on.

Let me put it to you simply: You paid nothing, you have nothing. Do you get it?

Owner lends you his property under licensing terms. You pay him nothing, and forego no legal rights (you have none to the property).

He demands the property back. You must give it back (the license is revoked).

Since you did not pay him you cannot go to the court and say "Legally, I have the right to enforce this term against the grantor".

No: you have no contract, you paid him nothing.

Just as he can demand back his lawnmower he lent you, he can demand you stop using his code.

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