[Sussex] Some more thoughts on the Microsoft/Novel deal

[Nico Kadel-Garcia]

Ian mu wrote:
> No need to try not to flame :), not even sure there's a need to think 
> about it, it's only an opinion of mine. You actually cite one of the 
> things I was thinking actually. Things like the ms fonts afaik aren't 
> allowed to be distributed unless in original form? Which I assume is 
> why most distros are flakey with them. Now Suse would be able to do 
> this without problem unlike other distros.
I don't think that's the only issue. The MS font packages require you to 
sign away your soul to use them: that kind of registration and 
authorized user management is not compatible with most automated 
installation procedures. ISo effectively, unless you want to become a 
licensing middleman, it's very difficult to package them legally. And 
notice that the Novell/Microsoft agreement provides no protection 
against such violations: that's a software license issue, not a patent 
issue, which is what the new agreement is about. The devil's in the details.