Uruguay violates GPL by deleting root on OLPCs

[Ed McNierney]

Eben -

Hi; thanks.  Chris Ball and I had some correspondence with Brett Smith a few months ago in order to make some introductions and get the FSF and Plan Ceibal talking.  It seems that that didn't quite happen, and we've asked Martin Langhoff (who's responsible for OLPC technical work with Plan Ceibal) to pick up the ball and try again.  If Brett's not the right person to do that, just let Martin know.

	- Ed

Ed McNierney
CTO / VP of Engineering
One Laptop per Child
ed at laptop.org
+1 (978) 761-0049

On Jul 7, 2010, at 12:47 PM, Eben Moglen wrote:

> I don't know what the technical details are, but it sounds as though
> the right people are present in the conversation.  For GPLv3
> programs-- which would include bash, tar, and Samba as well as the
> toolchain, to take some examples--the requirement is for "installation
> information" to be provided to anyone who requests or receives source
> code.  Installation information is defined as "any methods,
> procedures, authorization keys, or other information required to
> install and execute modified versions of a covered work in [the
> laptop] from a modified version of its Corresponding Source."  That
> requirement can be satisfied, for some programs, by informing the user
> how to run a replacement copy, without root privilege, out of the
> primary user's home directory.  Some programs might require escalated
> privileges in order to install and run a modified version (of a
> daemon, for example).  Side-stepping the OS on the hard drive, booting
> a system on removable media, and then installing the new version on
> the fixed disk would be a "method" within the meaning of the license
> in those cases.
> 
> Details are crucial.  Working with relevant parties to ensure
> compliance is SFLC's purpose in a situation such as this.  We'd be
> happy to help if there is interest.
> 
> Regards,
> Eben
> 
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