[MinGW-dvlpr] Google's Android/Bionic header files, and relevance to w32api headers

[Charles W. <cwi...@us...>]

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/03/29/google_android_and_the_linux_headers/

Basically, Google took the linux (GPLv2) headers, ran a bunch of scripts
to remove programmer commentary (creative content), and claimed that the
result has no creative content and is therefore not covered by copyright:

"This header was automatically generated from a Linux kernel header of
the same name, to make information necessary for userspace to call into
the kernel available to libc," reads the top of each file in the Bionic
library. "It contains only constants, structures, and macros generated
from the original header, and thus, contains no copyrightable information."

Thus, they are claiming that end users can use those 'clean headers' and
NOT contract a GPL virus.

Now, the whole controversy is over whether this is true: on the "sure,
fine, no problem" side you have Google, Linus Torvalds, Eben Moglen(?),
and many others.  On the "uh, oh, that's not kosher" side you have
basically Raymond Nimmer and Edward Naughton -- a couple of guys with
ties to Microsoft.

So...while it would be interesting if there were some definitive court
resolution re: Android's use of the linux headers in this way, which we
could then rely on, I doubt that will actually happen (who has standing?
would Linus sue? apparently not).  And, since the guys on the
"anti-google" side seem to be carrying water for MS, I can bet MS has
some definite opinions concerning the legality of treating their SDK
headers the way Google treated linux's...

--
Chuck