On Tue, 23 Nov 1999, Frank da Cruz wrote:
> > > I think one solution might be that each "free Unix" "product", like
> > > NetBSD, creates a C-Kermit install package in its own native format (RPM
> > > or whatever), and this platform-specific install package is allowed to go
> > > on the FTP sites and free software CDROMs, since it is, after all, the
> > > same package that goes out with the base product (NetBSD in this case).
> > Er, kermit is not part of base NetBSD.
> Right, included with base NetBSD.  Accompanies base NetBSD -- whatever the
> right words are.

Neither of these. NetBSD consists of a set of programs that's officially
released & distributed. Then there's a collection of 3rd party software,
into which kermit belongs. The latter is like some collection of RPM's
"spec" files, and although we maintain these, they do not include any
actual sources. 


> > OK, so:
> >  - we can put up compiled binaries of kermit
> >
> Yes.
> 
> >  - we can NOT put up source for people's convenience 
> >
> I am suggesting that you can put up source too if it's in some kind of NetBSD
> package format like RPM, whatever you use.  Maybe I'm just not understanding
> this package business very well...  Anyway, I'm trying to find a solution that
> will work for both of us.

We'd use exactly the format you use, basically mirroring your source file.


> >  - can anyone else put up compiled binaries of kermit, e.g. because
> >    noone else can generate these binaries for this certain OS version
> >    or hardware platform (think of new platforms NetBSD is ported to)
> >    (really, we don't have means & matters to prevent this, but I'd just
> >    like to know...)
> > 
> Sure, but obviously we (the Kermit Project) have the right to add the binaries
> to our own ftp site; this is what we have been doing for many years.  To
> illustrate, the current C-Kermit 7.0 Beta has about 170 binaries; I made about
> 80 of them myself, and the rest were sent in by other people who have access
> to platforms I can't reach.

That's only fair. Indeed, we would have a web page where you could
download (or link...) kermit binaries for NetBSD when they become
available.


> And of course we like to have patches back from people who needed to make
> them, so we can maintain a single master source for everybody.  This is not a
> legal issue, just common sense, to prevent forking.

Yes.


 - Hubert

-- 
NetBSD - Better for your uptime than Viagra