Re: @SImon Hobson - Linus doesn't want programmers to make a living from code
If after all this years we still have people defending the GPL under false premises
What false premises ?
Does the GPL somehow hide what you can and can't do with code released with that licence ? No
Is it in any way unclear ? No
Does it in any way stop you using it in any way you want ? No
Does it in any way say what you must do with YOUR OWN CODE ? No
What is does say is very clear. You can use, or not according to your choice, GPL code. You can modify it, you can create derivative works, you can incorporate it into other works. The ONLY thing it (well GPLv2 at least) says is that you cannot grant anyone you distribute that GPL code to any lesser rights than those. Put another way, what you cannot do is take GPL code, modify it/derive from it/incorporate it onto other works and redistribute it without giving anyone you distribute it to the same rights<period>.
Of course, what that does mean is that you can't take a load of GPL code, build a closed commercial system with it, and then sell it as a closed proprietary system. If you want to do that then you have choices - but don't moan that people have decided not to allow you to make a fast buck by using their hard work without passing on the benefits of that in the same way that they were given to you. So either do your own work, approach the original creators and negotiate a licence that allows you to do what you want, or work out how to correctly link to the GPL'd modules ina way that leaves your own code separate (depending on what you want to do, that may well be practical).
But don't falsely accuse the GPL of being something it isn't just because it doesn't allow you to make a fast buck on the back of someone else's work. You absolutely ARE allowed to make money writing code. You just aren't allowed to make money by ripping off others' code in a way they aren't happy with. Anyone complaining that the GPL prevents them making money from their code is wanting to do exactly that - rip off others' work.
As to ZFS. I'm pretty sure Linus isn't complaining - he's simply stating an opinion that the licence the ZFS code comes with isn't compatible with how Linux works. In fact, he's supporting the principle that the originator of a piece of code can decide what licence terms they want to apply to it - and honouring that choice. That the two are not compatible is indeed unfortunate from the PoV of incorporating ZFS into Linux, but then it's also unfortunate that if I buy a piece of equipment from (say) North America then it probably doesn't come with the right voltage requirements and plug to plug it straight in in the UK.
With that analogy, you could say that I could simply buy (or make, perhaps even starting making and selling them) a converter that provides a US style socket with the right voltage on it. Then the US equipment can just plug in - and that's what some people have suggested, a "converter shim" that takes one plug on one side (with one licence) and converts to a different plug on the other side to plug into the Linux kernel (with a different licence). By that analogy, Oracle have shown that they consider details of the interface (e.g. dimensions of the socket, and how a plug interacts with it) as being under their non-permissive licence - c.f. the ongoing case with Google about interface header files. That may or may not be valid - we'll have to wait and see. But what Linus has said is that given the cost of dealing with "Oracle parking it's tanks on your lawn", he doesn't want to take any risk. I can see his point, it is very expensive to successfully defend such an action, even more expensive to lose.