[Opensim-dev] Violating the GPL by looking (Re: Voice Module)

[Kyle Hamilton]

On Wed, Mar 19, 2008 at 11:23 PM, Dzonatas <dzonatas at dzonux.net> wrote:
> Kyle Hamilton wrote:
>  > On Wed, Mar 19, 2008 at 9:46 PM, Dzonatas <dzonatas at dzonux.net> wrote:
>  >
>  >> Kyle Hamilton wrote:
>  >>  > No, patent law prevents someone else from being able to patent your code base.
>  >>  >
>  >>  > http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/doc/general/index.html has a
>  >>  > bunch of information on the topic, and I wholeheartedly suggest that
>  >>  > anyone who wants to participate in this discussion read it.
>  >>  >
>  >>  That only covers the U.S.
>  >>
>  >
>  > The details are specific to the US, but the overall process is
>  > generalized to other signatories of the Hague Convention.
>  >
>
>  http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/doc/general/index.html#treaties
>
>  I don't see that being covered in that text.
>
>  There is the assumption that the source code being produced is not being
>  patented, so the above would not apply if no patents exist. There is the
>  need to guarantee patent-free source code.

Source code cannot be patented.  Source code is copyrighted.

The invention of "a computer which is programmed to do X, Y, and Z"
can be patented.  (I don't particularly agree with this, but this is
the way things currently stand.)

And the BSD license under which opensim is distributed makes no
mention of patents.  There's no guarantee of code which, when loaded
and executed, will not infringe a patent.  Thus, there is no apparent
"need to guarantee patent-free source code", since patents haven't
entered into the equation thus far.

IANAL.  (I made a mistake when I mentioned the Hague Convention, which
is a treaty related to how people in foreign countries can initiate
civil recovery of patent infringements.  The appropriate things are:
Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, Patent
Cooperation Treaty.

If conditions are different where you happen to live, by all means
read up on them.  I am subject to US law, thus I quote US sources.

-Kyle H