Re: Configure GDB for MinGW

["Eli Zaretskii" <eliz@gnu.org>]

> Date: Tue, 25 May 2004 22:27:49 -0400
> From: Christopher Faylor <cgf@alum.bu.edu>
> 
> >I've been managing a project for two or three years, I created the
> >application under the GNU GPL and its library under the public domain.
> >I'm supporting both Free Software and Open Source.  Then, I think you
> >can trust what I'm providing.  IMO, It is more valuable than any paper.
> 
> Judging your reputation isn't really an option for me.

Signing papers is not about the reputation of the person who
contributes; in fact, it has nothing to do with that at all.  It is
required for the GNU project to be able to defend in court its legal
right to distribute every single line of the code in its projects, in
the (arguably improbable) case that some software vendor will try to
claim that part of the GDB code was unlawfully stolen from that
software vendor.

For example, your employer could claim that code you contributed to
GDB was written when you were working for that employer and that
therefore that code is your employer's property, and the FSF has no
right to distribute it.