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Re: Question About GNU General Public License


From: telford
Subject: Re: Question About GNU General Public License
Date: Wed, 21 Jul 2004 01:52:20 -0000

Martin Dickopp <expires-2004-08-31@zero-based.org> wrote:
> <telford@xenon.triode.net.au> writes:

>> Rui Miguel Seabra <rms@1407.org> wrote:
>>
>>> Yes. Mind, the realm of ideas, where the subject can be shared without
>>> any loss of the emitter. If you transmit an idea you don't loose it. You
>>> still have it, and the receivers now have it _too_ (neutral-win)
>>
>>> If you give your video card to someone else, you lost your video card
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>>> (loose-win).
>>
>>> It's a very clear distinction, at least to me. Do you have a problem
>>> with that? In mind the most common transactions are neutral-win. You
>>> didn't loose an idea (neutral) I won by learning something.
>>
>> So by your measurement a bacterial disease is software because you can
>> give it to someone else while still having it yourself.

> No, this is a common fallacy: "if A, then B" is *not* the same as
> "if B, then A."  In particluar, "if something is software, it can be
> duplicated" is not the same as "if something can be duplicated, it is
> software."

This only works if you are willing to believe in something which is
neither software nor hardware (in RMS terms, neither mind nor matter).
The existance of such a thing would be sufficient to demonstrate a
problem with the mind/matter classification system. NB: Based on the
underlined proposition, duplication capability excludes the thing from
membership of the hardware set.

        - Tel


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