Microsoft commits to XML docs for long term

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Interesting, and I think misleading.

Take a read of the license for the MS Office XML schema.

In brief:

If you distribute, license or sell a Licensed Implementation, this license is conditioned upon you requiring that the following notice be prominently displayed in all copies and derivative works of your source code and in copies of the documentation and licenses associated with your Licensed Implementation:

"This product may incorporate intellectual property owned by Microsoft Corporation. The terms and conditions upon which Microsoft is licensing such intellectual property may be found at http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/en-us/odcXMLRef/html/odcXMLRefLegalNotice.asp."

By including the above notice in a Licensed Implementation, you will be deemed to have accepted the terms and conditions of this license. You are not licensed to distribute a Licensed Implementation under license terms and conditions that prohibit the terms and conditions of this license. You are not licensed to sublicense or transfer your rights."

Please note the very last sentence. You may NOT license or transfer your rights. Now please explain if yu can how that fits within the GPL framework?

I suppose (and suspect) it is possible for Sun to buils an "add-on" to Start/Open Offcie that is NOT part of the GPL and the user would have to agree to it's being installed and used. I typical Microsoft EULA would of course be included.

Also consider the following from their web site:

Copyright ? Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Permission to copy, display and distribute this document is available at: http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/en-us/odcXMLRef/html/odcXMLRefLegalNotice.asp?frame=true.

No right to create modifications or derivatives of this Specification is granted herein.

Again, this is in stark contrast to open source. You may not modify it in anyway nor may you make dirivitive works. That pretty much leaves open source out of it all together doesn't it?

As I said, I can see Sun building and SELLING propriatary code to allow transfer to open source, but it will still be proprietary and may not be touched by open source.

Posted by: No_Ax_to_Grind   Posted on: 11/05/04 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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