[tulip] tulip on solaris

[Donald Becker]

On Tue, 20 Feb 2001, Thomas Dodd wrote:
> Donald Becker wrote:
> > 
> > On Mon, 19 Feb 2001, minchu mo wrote:
> > 
> > > Does anyone know how to convert the linux version of
> > > tulip.c to solaris version?
> > >
> > > I have installed Intel Solaris 8 and need a unix
> > > version of tulip as network driver.
> > 
> > It would be a violation of the GPL to distribute a version of the Linux
> > tulip driver ported to Solaris.  Well, at least until Scott McNealy GPLs
> > Solaris (scheduled just after the evolution of porcine aviation).
> 
> Why would a port of tulip.c to Solaris be a GPL violation?
> As long as the changes are published, isn't it OK.

No.  You have created a combined work derived from two other works.  The
combined work must conform to both licenses, and the licenses conflict.

> I have the Solaris ports of many GPL apps, and many came in binary
> form.

Device drivers are not applications, they are part of the kernel.
Dynamic linking does not change their status.

See
  http://www.scyld.com/expert/license.html

> What am I missing here?
> Since sun released the Solaris source code...

They haven't released their source code under the GPL.  You can do what
you like with the *BSD drivers, but not with the Linux drivers.

Donald Becker				becker@scyld.com
Scyld Computing Corporation		http://www.scyld.com
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