ensuring GNU readline isn't used

[John J. Lee]

Duncan Booth <duncan.booth at invalid.invalid> writes:

> Josh Paetzel <josh at tcbug.org> wrote:
>
>> Is there a way to ensure that GNU readline isn't used (even though
>> support may have been compiled in?).  I'm experiencing a licensing
>> problem, I'd like to use the "cmd" module, for example, but my code is
>> proprietary and hence, if cmd uses readline, I can't use cmd.
>
> I think you have misread the GPL: just because your non-GPL code *can* be 
> used with something covered by the GPL doesn't mean your code is infected 
> by the GPL. Your code doesn't require a GPL module to run (you can use a 
> version of cmd compiled without readline), and you aren't attempting to 
> distribute it with a GPL module, so you don't need to care how the end user 
> chooses to run it.

Indeed -- I recall coming across some commercial control &
data-acquisition software which was distributed with an inferior
readline work-alike library, but came with detailed instructions for
how to use GNU readline instead.  All users who had the time and good
sense presumably linked with readline proper.


John