[SciPy-Dev] [Numpy-discussion] Windows wheels using MKL?

[Matthew Brett]

Hi,

On Thu, Mar 27, 2014 at 3:18 AM, Robert Kern <robert.kern at gmail.com> wrote:
> On Thu, Mar 27, 2014 at 12:29 AM, Matthew Brett <matthew.brett at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Hi,
>>
>> On Wed, Mar 26, 2014 at 4:48 PM, Matthew Brett <matthew.brett at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> Hi,
>>>
>>> Can I check what is stopping us building official numpy binary wheels
>>> for Windows using the Intel Math Kernel Library?
>>>
>>> * We'd need developer licenses, but those sound like they would be
>>> easy to come by
>>> * We'd have to add something to the license for the wheel on the lines
>>> of the Canopy license [1], derived from the MKL license [2] - is that
>>> a problem?
>>>
>>> Are there other problems for numpy?
>>
>> Talking with Fernando, we identified these as being the key problem
>> clauses in the MKL license [1]:
>>
>> <start quote>
>> D. DISTRIBUTION: Distribution of the Redistributables is also subject
>> to the following limitations:
>> [snipped clauses]
>>  (iv) shall use a license agreement
>> that prohibits disassembly and reverse engineering of the
>> Redistributables, (v) shall indemnify, hold
>> harmless, and defend Intel and its suppliers from and against any
>> claims or lawsuits, including
>> attorney's fees, that arise or result from your distribution of any product.
>> </end quote>
>>
>> The first is a problem that might conceivably be adequately solved by
>> adding a paragraph to the Pypi page for numpy ("If you download and
>> install the windows binaries, you also agree... ") and copying a new
>> clause into the license in the installed tree.   Maybe.   The second
>> looks like it would be very hard to deal with for open source project
>> like us....
>
> It would be confusing to distribute these non-BSD wheels on the same
> PyPI page that declares most prominently that numpy is BSD-licensed.
> Adding some text elsewhere on the PyPI page is not going to help very
> much: people look at the "License: BSD" first and foremost. Nothing
> stops anyone else from building and distributing MKL-built binaries, a
> la C. Gohlke, but I don't think it is wise to do so on the PyPI page.

Can you see any circumstances in which we could use the MKL binaries from pypi?

Cheers,

Matthew