RE: Re: [License of kernel components] linux-2.x.y/Documentation/logo.GIFshould be logo.PNG?

[David Lang]

On Tue, 23 Dec 2003 xan2@xxxxxxx wrote:

> Gene Heskett <gene.heskett@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote (23th, 2003 6:07 pm)
> >>Re: [License of kernel components] linux-2.x.y/Documentation/logo.GIF
> should be logo.PNG?
> >
> > On Tuesday 23 December 2003 10:20, xan2@xxxxxxx wrote:
> > >Hi,
> > >
> > >I believe that the tux logo located at
> > >linux-2.6.0/Documentation/logo.gif is the image that appears on the
> > >boot of the system if framebuffer is enabled, isn't it?
> > >
> > >In this cas, and also if it's only for documentation purpose, I
> > > think that we could change the propietary (and I think patented)
> > > format of this logo (gif) to anyone that were free (for example
> > > like PNG format [that has GPL licensed]).
> >
> > I don't think GIF was ever "proprietary", but the l-z-w compression
> > used was patented.  The patent expired earlier this year.  So gif
> > is
> > back.
>
> Sorry. I'm outdated. ;-)
> But, why not support a opensource format like PNG?
> And yes, now is expired but i think that we (the kernel users) used the
> gif format one year ago (I think that it's trivial to check that 2.4.x
> series used gif format. So they (patent registers of LZW) might demand
> the money that we did not pay to their.

and changing it now would prevent this how?

it's probably less risk to just ask for permission for the next 4 months
before the patent expires then to put new image rendering code into the
kernel (it will probably take close to for months for an answer of no to
officially come back down anyway)

David Lang

> Regards,
> Xan.
>
>
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