Re: lynx-dev Re: lynx crashes

[David Woolley]

> >I've recently installed the RPM distribution of lynx compiled
> >with SSL support. However, when I try to connect to a secure

I think you may need to be more precise about this.  Any SSL Lynx binary
from the USA is pirate software as the GPL does not permit distribution
of software which is not royalty free to all users.   With the exception
that it is illegal to import such software into the USA and that Clause
8 of the GPL must have been invoked by the developer, it is less clear
as to the situation for binaries created, and fetched from, outside of
the area covered by US software patent law.  My suspicion is that all
developers would have to have invoked clause 8, not just the person who
built with SSLeay; I think, it is as likely that they would take Lynx
completely out of the GPL as to do this.

I get the impression that the Red Hat archives don't vet contributions
well, as there have been recent cases where unstable development versions
of squid have been uploaded then fetched by innocents in search of the
latest version.  I get the impression that some RPM creators see it
more important to get a piece of (someone else's) software up in their
name than to do good quality control.

Although there is a certain anarchist element in the
free software movement, the GPL is designed to use existing law to
protect free software.  Breaching such laws undermines free software's
legal protection and gives a sound basis for commercial software 
salesmen to spread fear, uncertainty and doubt about the use of 
non-commercial software.

I'm assuming that:

1) you are a Canadian citizen living in Canada;

2) Canada doesn't permit software patents, or none of the 
   SSL algorithms have been patented there, or the only ones that are
   patented are covered by patents designed to prevent others patenting
   things (Netscape have such a patent), and which are royalty free to
   all.