Re: LilyPond distribution in Symbolic Composer

[David Kastrup]

Han-Wen Nienhuys <address@hidden> writes:

> Hi there
>
> On Sun, Jun 23, 2013 at 1:04 PM, pstone imap
> <address@hidden> wrote:
>> Hi, I just made Symbolic Composer produce LilyPond output. Works perfect!
>>
>> Is it possible to place LilyPond app directly into Symbolic Composer
>> distro? Your name would be in the Symbolic Composer about screen. Or
>> should I just add a link to download LilyPond?
>>
>> Let me know what is the best way to proceed.
>
> The limitations on redistribution of LilyPond are detailed in the GNU GPL,
>
>  http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html
>
> As far as I can tell, you would have to relicense Symbolic Composer
> under the GPL in order to include LilyPond.

Well, it would certainly be the easiest way.  In this particular case,
it does not appear to me from the description that it is the only
possible way.

The respective passages from the GPL are

      A compilation of a covered work with other separate and independent
    works, which are not by their nature extensions of the covered work,
    and which are not combined with it such as to form a larger program,
    in or on a volume of a storage or distribution medium, is called an
    "aggregate" if the compilation and its resulting copyright are not
    used to limit the access or legal rights of the compilation's users
    beyond what the individual works permit.  Inclusion of a covered work
    in an aggregate does not cause this License to apply to the other
    parts of the aggregate.

Now I interpret the sentence "I just made Symbolic Composed produce
LilyPond output" as LilyPond being newly _one_ of several possible
output formats, and it would not appear that LilyPond itself has been
modified in order to become a component of "Symbolic Composer".

I can't see this really as more than aggregation, judging from the
currently available information.

Of course, this means that the license terms of the GPL apply to
LilyPond as included (in particular, providing the source code
corresponding to the distributed version of LilyPond).  But as long as
LilyPond is one of several supported backends and is used as an
unchanged drop-in component, I don't see any licensing requirements
extending beyond LilyPond itself.

-- 
David Kastrup