DMD front end with commercial software

Alex Makhotin alex at bitprox.com
Tue Jun 1 16:37:54 PDT 2010


I'm considering to add the D code semantic awareness to the
IDE which I develop.

Before I start working on it I want to clarify some questions to remove
potential confusion in the future.

I would like to use the DMD front end for this purpose.
As I understand from the DMD front end readme.txt file the Artistic
License(attached as artistic.txt) can applied.

My intention is not to use the source code but compiled binary of the
front end with the wrapper and distribute them with the commercial
application. That is, I don't want to modify the source in any way.
Instead I want to compile the front end as a library and distribute it
linked with the proprietary application.

Considering the section 4 of the attached Artistic License

> 4. You may distribute the programs of this Package in object code or
> executable form, provided that you do at least ONE of the following:
> 
>     a) distribute a Standard Version of the executables and library files,
>     together with instructions (in the manual page or equivalent) on where
>     to get the Standard Version.

Does this apply in the case I described?

Considering the section 5 of the attached Artistic License

> 5. You may charge a reasonable copying fee for any distribution of this
> Package.  You may charge any fee you choose for support of this
> Package.  You may not charge a fee for this Package itself.  However,
> you may distribute this Package in aggregate with other (possibly
> commercial) programs as part of a larger (possibly commercial) software
> distribution provided that you do not advertise this Package as a
> product of your own.  You may embed this Package's interpreter within
> an executable of yours (by linking); this shall be construed as a mere
> form of aggregation, provided that the complete Standard Version of the
> interpreter is so embedded.

Does this mean that I can link the intact unchanged front end binary
like I described above?

Considering the section 7 of the attached Artistic License

> 7. Aggregation of this Package with a commercial distribution is always
> permitted provided that the use of this Package is embedded; that is,
> when no overt attempt is made to make this Package's interfaces visible
> to the end user of the commercial distribution.  Such use shall not be
> construed as a distribution of this Package.

As I understand from section 5 the word 'embedded' means linked with the
executable. What does "Package's interfaces visible to the end user of
the commercial distribution" mean?

As I understand I am permitted to do as I described.
The conditions I must comply are:
1. Do not claim the authorship.
2. Do not use the name "Digital Mars" to endorse or promote derived
products.
3. Include instructions (in the manual page or equivalent) on where to
get the original unmodified version in the distribution.

Am I permitted to do what I described?



-- 
Alex Makhotin,
the founder of BITPROX,
http://bitprox.com


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