pROCKrammers BLOG

Dear Richard Stallman,

My name is Sardorbek, I am member of Uzbekistan Linux Community. I have a question, as you know in order to use Mandriva Powerpack you should buy it, but if I would just download or take it from my friend. Does it lawful?

Thank you in advance.

Best wishes.

Sardorbek Pulatov (Uzbekistan Linux Community)

I don't recognie the name "Powerpack". I would guess
it is a GNU/Linux distribution. Most of them contain non-free software.

If it is entirely free software, then copying your friend's copy is lawful.
If it is not entirely free software, then it is unethical and you should
not use it at all.

This has nothing to do with GPLv2. The GNU GPL is a free software
license; all versions of the GNU GPL are free software licenses.
All the code that is under the GNU GPL, you are free to copy.
The problem would be non-free programs included in Mandriva Powerpack.
Those programs are NOT under GPLv2.

Sardorbek Pulatov (Uzbekistan Linux Community)

Please don't call the system "Linux" -- if you do that, you give the
system's principal developer, the GNU Project, none of the credit.

See http://www.gnu.org/gnu/gnu-linux-faq.html.