🚀 go-pugleaf

Centuries ago, Nostradamus foresaw a time when Isaac would say:
>On Tue, 01 Feb 2000 03:47:27 GMT, Christopher Browne 
><cbbrowne@knuth.brownes.org> wrote:
>>Centuries ago, Nostradamus foresaw a time when Isaac would say:
>>>Ownership may not be essential, but certainly when ownership changes
>>>there can be no question that distribution has taken place.   When
>>>a change of ownership does not take place, then further analysis is
>>>required.
>>
>>The notion that this has anything much to do with ownership is Just
>>Plain Silly.
>>
>Hopefully you are getting a good laugh from all the silly discussion :}
>
>>Note that the FSF does not require that people "transfer ownership" of
>>code to the FSF; if you make significant contributions of code to
>>FSF-related projects, you are required not to give ownership, but
>>rather to *assign copyright.*
>>
>
>Noone is talking about ownership of the software.  People are discussing
>ownership of machines that software is installed to discuss a particular
>distribution problem.   People are additionally talking about ownership
>of copies of software which obviously does have significance in copyright
>law.

... And they are discussing ownership when it is an *irrelevant*
factor.

I do not "own" the Linux kernel even though I have permission via
copyright law to make as many copies as I like.

People may own media.  They may own computers.  But unless there was
an agreement to transfer ownership, they do not own the software
unless they are the authors.  Not even with GPLed stuff.

When you head down the "I'm *so* confused about who might own this
software!" path, this does disservice to RMS who intended that the
question *become irrelevant.*  

If the software is licensed under the GPL, that establishes a certain
set of copying rights.  And those rights have *nothing* to do with
ownership.

-- 
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author's intent.  As a bonus, it will seem that your superior
intellect is cutting through all the excess verbiage to the very heart
of the matter.
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cbbrowne@ntlug.org - - <http://www.ntlug.org/~cbbrowne/lsf.html>