hide sourcecode

Terry Reedy tjreedy at udel.edu
Fri Feb 6 14:36:30 EST 2004


"Simon Wittber" <drconrad at metaplay.com.au> wrote in message
news:005a01c3ec89$b10eaeb0$0000fea9 at simonxp...
> Anand wrote:
> >Python is an 'open source' language so I advise you to share your
> source code with us :-)

This was preceded by "In a lighter vein, why do you want to hide your
python source code?".

> Python is open-source, true. However that does not mean programs written
> in Python must be open-sourced. Maybe I am having a bad day,

I think so.

> but I read your comment as a mob/peer pressure tactic,

Come now.  One person's opinion, written 'in a lighter vein' and concluded
with ':-)' is hardly mob pressure, and not even much peer pressure.

In any case, there are a couple of relevant and related points contained in
'Python is open-source'.

On the one hand, Guido intentionally did not GPL Python or put any but the
most obvious and sensible restrictions on its use.  In particular, one can
do the following that GPL prohibits: modify the compile and eval functions
to use a different set of op codes and distribute apps using the modified
interpreter without making the source of the modified interpreter
available.  (This is not absolute security, but it does make disassembly of
application runtime code harder.)

On the other hand, Guido and the developers, as Python developers,
generally prefer that Python code be potentially and actually shared.  So
they are under no obligation and are disinclined to do anything to make
non-sharing easier, not withstanding whatever they may have to do privately
to feed themselves and their families.

Terry J. Reedy







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