🚀 go-pugleaf

This article contains some clarifications on issues that a lot of
people have raised, and a status report so far.

I have changed gnu.emacs to gnu.emacs.help, since gnu.emacs is a dead
newsgroup.  Use of gnu.emacs also causes many news systems to forward
the article to gnu.emacs.announce which is not appropriate for this
particular discussion.

Several people have suggested that, since my version is in wider use
and also derives from Pace Willisson's version, I should keep the name
"ispell", and FSF should rename their version.  If FSF wants to do
that, it would certainly be an acceptable solution to the problem.
They could even call it "gspell" or "gispell" without fear of
confusion.  I'm investigating that option, though as I said before, I
personally believe FSF should have priority if they want it.

A number of people have asked me, "why not integrate the two versions
and distribute them all under the Gnu Public License?"  There are a
couple of reasons for this.  First, integration is nontrivial; Pace
Willisson and I discussed it a year or so ago and concluded that we
didn't want to put out the effort.  Second, I'm not personally
convinced that the Gnu version has any significant features that are
missing from my version, with the exception that it uses less memory
for the hash table.  (If I'm wrong, I'd sure like to hear about it).

Third, and most important, I'm not willing to put my software under
the GPL.  Since my objections are basically political, I don't think
this forum is the proper place to discuss it, so I won't go further
than that here.  People who wish to hear my objections (they're hardly
original) are welcome to e-mail me.

Actually, I don't understand why FSF feels a need to distribute their
own version of ispell when there's already a free version out there.
If the FSF wants to take my version and distribute it *without*
putting it under the GPL, they are welcome to.  It's the GPL I object
to, not FSF.  But that's their business.

Okay, enough clarifications.  Here are the leading candidates from the
suggestions I've received so far:

	wspell		(world spell)
	mspell		(multi-lingual spell)
	panspell

Votes and additional suggestions are welcome, preferably by e-mail.
-- 
	Geoff Kuenning	geoff@maui.cs.ucla.edu	geoff@ITcorp.com