Re: Question about license

[Audrius Meskauskas <audriusa@xxxxxxxxxx>]

hultul wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I'm developing JVM implementation which uses GNU Classpath as runtime 
> class library.
> I have two questions about the license of GPLv2 with GNU Classpath 
> Exception, though I'm not sure whether those questions are adequate 
> for GNU Classpath community.
>
> 1. Can I bundle GNU Classpath binary without any modification and my 
> JVM(thought to be not under GPL), and distribute that not under GPL?
>
> 2. If I make some proprietary classes(e.g. java.lang.ClassLoader) be 
> loaded prior to GNU Classpath's classes, am I modify GNU Classpath? If 
> so, are those proprietary classes and/or JVM implementation should be 
> under GPL?
I think, you can link your code with GNU Classpath library regardless on 
how nasty license your code has, and distribute this combination. And 
likely you can make various tricks with class loaders as well as long as 
you do not modify the original GNU Classpath code.

If you modify any single line of the GNU Classpath, this is another 
story. Then, I think,  you must release the modified version of 
Classpath (not all your JRE) under the same GPL+Exception license. The 
simplest way would be just to contribute changes to this project, this 
protects from making your changes incompatible with the future changes, 
made during the later development of GNU Classpath.

I am not a lawyer and can only express my own opinion. Please read 
http://www.gnu.org/software/classpath/license.html yourself.

Audrius