Re: Licensing question

Chris wrote:
> Christoph Lampert wrote:
>>What you are not allowed to do is _distribute_ XviD together with a
>>proprietary software, i.e. make a bundle for download, 
>>have your player's installer directly install XviD as well, 
> 
> 
> No thats is quite incorrect.
> 
> You are referring to the mere aggregation of the work. That it is installed onto a machine by a 
> common installer does not bring the works under the GPL.

No, I am not talking about mere aggregation. Mere aggregation would e.g.
be a Linux distribution CD which contains XviD and the proprietary 
acroread together.

I am refering to creating "combined works" out of XviD and another 
program. GPL doesn't clearly define that term, and since XviD is a 
library, it is somewhat difficult to judge this, but our interpretation 
is the following: It is not allowed to have a proprietary movie player
which uses XviD as a plugin, and XviD itself bundled together into one 
piece of software (e.g. a common installer), because the intent is to 
create a video player with more functionality, and it would have been 
the case without XviD included.
It is allowed to have e.g. separate download links to XviD and a
proprietary software on the same homepage etc., but nothing like 
"automatic" to installs both.

gruel