Choice of The GPL As GNU Readline's License
GNU readline is notable for being a free software library which is licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL) instead of the GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL). Free software libraries are often licensed under the LGPL, for example, the GNU C Library, GNU gettext and FLTK.
A developer of an application who chooses to link to an LGPL licensed library when building a new application is required to have the LGPL licensed library which it uses remain under the LGPL when distributing the combined resulting application. The part of the combined application excluding the LGPL licensed library can remain under the original license. This is in contrast to a developer choosing to use a GPL licensed library to create a new application, in which case the entire combined resulting application is required to be licensed under the GPL when distributed, to comply with section 5 of the GPL.
Read more about this topic: GNU Readline
Famous quotes containing the words choice and/or license:
“And yet ‘twould seem that what is sung
In happy sadness by the young,
Fate has no choice but to fulfill.”
—Robert Frost (1874–1963)
“Only one marriage I regret. I remember after I got that marriage license I went across from the license bureau to a bar for a drink. The bartender said, “What will you have, sir?” And I said, “A glass of hemlock.””
—Ernest Hemingway (1899–1961)