Dear Team,
This sounds good to me. Especially the comment about software patents.
Software source code can be written with different variable names and
slightly different coding styles. But when a specific function needs
implementation, often there is only one logical approach. If that approach
is patented, then it becomes "un-usable" by most programmers. It is
essentially by nature the same thing as allowing artists to patent certain
shades of color, because they have used it first in a famous painting. The
idea strikes me as completely ludicrous.
However, I am all for giving credit where credit is due. I like to see
copyright notices and references to the GPL in Linux oriented code. It
gives me a better "feel" for those "upon whose shoulders I stand".
Arthur
----- Original Message -----
From: "mlw" <markw@mohawksoft.com>
To: <jm.poure@freesurf.fr>
Cc: "David Terrell" <dbt@meat.net>; "PostgreSQL-development"
<pgsql-hackers@postgresql.org>
Sent: Thursday, May 02, 2002 8:44 AM
Subject: Re: [HACKERS] PostgreSQL mission statement?
> Jean-Michel POURE wrote:
> >
> > The PostgreSQL community is committed to creating and maintaining the
best,
> > most reliable, open-source multi-purpose standards based database, and
with
> > it, promote free(dom) and open source software world wide.
> >
> > I hope you don't mind writing "free(dom)" with the idea of fighting
patent
> > abuses.
>
> No, the mission statement is about what the postgresql group, as a whole,
is
> all about.
>
> I know it seems silly to have such a thing, but really, the more I read on
this
> discussion, the more it seems like it is a useful "call to arms" for
developers
> and users alike.
>
> Now, I do not wish to have a manifesto, but a short and sweet "this is who
we
> are, and this is what we do" could be a positive thing.
>
> P.S. I think every software engineer worth anything should fight software
> patents. If Donald Knuth didn't patent his algorithms, practically none of
us
> deserve patents. I mean seriously, most of the software patents are
trivial and
> obvious. Knuth did something, most of us only build on his work.
>
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