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Gnomemeeting Closes the Source 196

Posted by CmdrTaco from the heart-breaking-announcements dept.
daja77 writes "There is an announcement on Gnomemeeting stating that they are closing the source to be able to support tcpa and palladium. The gnomemeeting PRO version will be available for $50 tomorrow and GPL version will be discontinued."
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Gnomemeeting Closes the Source More

Gnomemeeting Closes the Source

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  • For fuck's sake (Score:4, Insightful)

    by chrisseaton ( 573490 ) on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @03:45PM (#5639849) Homepage
    Give it a rest, Taco!

  • For real (Score:2, Informative)

    by secolactico ( 519805 )
    The sad part is, this is not an April Fools.

    • Re:For real (Score:2, Informative)

      by bazmonkey ( 555276 )
      Yes it is. 1) Can't happen. GPL guarantees stuff like this couldn't.

      2) It's April fool's day. Trust us.

      3) Oh, by the way, did you hear about that IPv4 header bit???
      • Yeah, the IPv4 header bit story rocked! :)
      • Mmm... regarding point 1, are you sure they could not close it?

        I thought that as the copyright owner, you can change the license whenever you want. What has been released as GPL remains GPL, but if you do any new developpement, it falls under your new license, which can be closed.

        The one thing I do not understand, what happens if other people contributed to the project while it was under the GPL? Do you have to remove their part of the code to relicense it?

        mysql is good example of twin licences for th
        • Yes, future code could be closed but already GPL'ed versions would remain GPL'ed. So would any derivative works of a GPL licensee.

          Since the orignating licensor doesn't have to have a license with themselves, it is their right to change the licensing scheme as they see fit. Licensing changes in this fashion cannot be retroactive since that would violate the original GPL license.

          No, I am not a lawyer. That is just simple contract law that I have picked up here and there from the 4 people in my family tha
          • If already GPLed code stays GPL, then everyone can clone it (still under GPL). Therefore the problem is not in the code, but in existing Gnomemeeting developers who won't work on GPLed code anymore.

            So, let's just find new developers for GNU/Gnomemeeting then :)

          • " Yes, future code could be closed but already GPL'ed versions would remain GPL'ed. So would any derivative works of a GPL licensee."
            Note that future code can only be closed IF the authors have been assigned copyright rights to all portions of the code or all contributors have agreed to the closing.

            i.e. if there's one line of code that hasn't had its copyright assigned and the contributor hasn't given permission, then the code can't go GPL (Until that line is removed, a la BSD and the AT&T copyrights.)
        • You can release code of your copyright under another license.

          Many projects, especially those run by companies, have a contribution clause which says that if you add your code to their tree the copyright is transfered to them. This allows them to relicense the software.

          If they do not own the copyright to contributed parts, then they must remove the contributed parts or have approval by the copyright holders.
      • 1) Can't happen. GPL guarantees stuff like this couldn't.

        Wrong. Existing sourcecode cannot be taken away, but as long as the original and patch (if any) authors want to do so, they can close the source of any future releases.

        This is exactly what happened to Tux Racer.
    • Two clues this is another joke; quoted from the article:
      1. We are proud to announce today (emphasis mine) the upcoming release of GnomeMeeting PRO.
      2. We decided to close the source code of GnomeMeeting because we think it is a good way to produce more secure software.

  • I love you Taco! (Score:2, Funny)

    by Saint ( 12232 )
    What a refreshing bit of news!

  • enough (Score:2, Insightful)

    by minaguib ( 591953 )
    is enough. There's something magical every april 1st that turns /. into a garbage can

    • Re:enough (Score:5, Funny)

      by WD ( 96061 ) on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @03:49PM (#5639884)
      Is is really that much better the rest of the year??

    • Re:enough (Score:3, Insightful)

      by jagripino ( 314506 )
      Dude... It's supposed to be funny! Enjoy it!

      Really, it may not be you kind of humour, but I'm having fun with the discussions on /. today.

    • Re:enough (Score:5, Insightful)

      by RollingThunder ( 88952 ) on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @03:53PM (#5639921)
      Since you know it happens - why not just take a day off of Slashdot?

      • and do what? (Score:5, Funny)

        by SweetAndSourJesus ( 555410 ) <JesusAndTheRobot@yahoo . c om> on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @03:58PM (#5639962)
        go outside?

        now who's joking with who here?
      • I'm addicted. Typing http://www.slashdot.org in my URL bar is instinct when i open my browser. Ack :S

      • Re:enough (Score:5, Insightful)

        by dschuetz ( 10924 ) <.gro.tensad. .ta. .divad.> on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @04:04PM (#5640001)
        Since you know it happens - why not just take a day off of Slashdot?

        Because they continue to post some real stories, too.

        The novelty of April Fool's jokes (a fun RFC, an explanation of pigeon-ranking technology, etc.) wears really thin when there are a dozen of them in a row. Especially so when you have to figure out which stories are real in the middle of the other junk.

        Slashdot is in a strange position with regards to these hoaxes. It's not, generally, a creator of jokes, but instead publicizes others' jokes for fun and comments. So, by definition, we see a whole lot more of them here simply because /. is an aggregator of other stories, by definition.

        What was suggested last year was that there be one or two April Fools' "quickies" with links to a bunch of funny jokes, rather than trying to pass each and every stupid hoax off as a real story. Obviously, that's not happening this time.

        On the other hand, I have to admit grudging satisfaction with the IP RFC evil-bit bit, since the joke is no longer the RFC story, but the fact that it keeps coming up.

        I also think the slew of really off-the-wall Ask Slashdot stories is pretty good. They're crazy enough that you can recognize them right off as April Fool's jokes, but reasonable enough that they're actually generating some fun discussion.

        But, really, the "post a different hoax every hour" model was broken last year, and it's just as broken this year.
        • well, when you create your own site for linking to news, you don't have to do it.
          Please try to remember that some of us actually have lives, so we're not refreshing slashdot 10 time a day just to get the latest story. Which, more time then not, you could get quicker if you just went to the site that usually get linked to:
          CNN, NY Times, etc...

          Now, go get laid and don't come back for a week.
          • The problem with this kind of comment is that as stupid as Slashdot's April's Fools, complaining about this kind of stupidity is generally regarded as stupid seven fold, and complaining about this complaining, as you have done, is stupid seventy and seven fold. Which makes me stupid seven hundred seventy and seven fold. Whoops.
    • Don't you get it? Slashdot isn't making up these jokes, they're reporting them. I don't read the gnomemeeting website. I wouldn't have seen this joke. Now I have and I'm happier for it. Don't think of it as slashdot trying to perpetrate 10 different jokes. Instead, think of them as a joke aggregator finding the best of today for you.
    • You know, there are Alternatives [bottomquark.net] if you don't like Slashdot's posters.

      Or hey, you know what? Stay away from the internet for the rest of the day. Take a walk! It's beautiful outside where I am! Think I'll do that now.
  • Comeon, this isn't anywhere near as good as the working whitespace language. You're slipping.

  • About time (Score:5, Funny)

    by Gunnery Sgt. Hartman ( 221748 ) on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @03:46PM (#5639857) Homepage
    Its about time somebody closed the code. All the bugs kept getting out and running wild. Fifty dollars seems like a fair price not having to put up with any more loose bugs.

  • This must be a joke! (Score:5, Funny)

    by TopShelf ( 92521 ) on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @03:47PM (#5639864) Homepage Journal
    I won't believe this story until it's been posted by CmdrTaco 3 or 4 more times today...
  • You know, this one time, at band camp...
  • Damn, April 1st!!!!!
  • I'd buy it! Heck, I'll throw a little money towards any quality linux project if it means good interoperability with other widely used apps.
  • We decided to close the source code of GnomeMeeting because we think it is a good way to produce more secure software.

    Enough already.

    It's bad enough I have to go to traffic court today.

    • Today is the first day of the year that you can get a ticket for driving with studded snow tires in the state of Washington... Whoever decided that a law should take effect every year on April 1 should be... well, it shoudln't be pretty.

      "Sir, I have to issue you this $86 ticket"
      "April fools, right?"
      "No, sir, this is for real."

  • Sigh... (Score:1)

    by BrK ( 39585 )
    These stopped being funny about 8 hours ago. Some were good, but now we seem to be scraping the bottom of the barrel.

  • April 1st (Score:2, Insightful)

    by LordSah ( 185088 )
    Is such a horrible, horrible day for viewing slashdot. I forgot until I just looked. See y'all tomorrow.

    • Re:April 1st (Score:5, Insightful)

      by ohchaos ( 564646 ) on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @03:59PM (#5639965)
      you think it's a bad day for viewing slashdot.... you should try moderating it..... *sigh*
      • That's nothing. Moderators on April 1 can do no wrong. What about meta-moderation?

        I clicked the "unwilling to moderate" checkbox last April 1, after being faced with the conundrum of metamoderating a "fr15t p0st" that had been modded +5, informative. I couldn't decide if the moderators were just being morons, staging a coup against the fake story overload, or just doing an April Fools joke of their own.

        Yep, that was the moment when I realized, no matter how long I spent on /., I would never reall
  • bad editor! -1 redundant, -1 overrated.
  • ..Get me off this crazy thing!

    Please! I'll give you anything you want! No more April fools jokes.. I'M ONLY HUMAN! MERCY!

  • Look! There they go! (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Limburgher ( 523006 ) on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @03:50PM (#5639900) Homepage Journal
    The monkeys! They aer flying out of my butt!

    Seriously, tho, can't discontinue the GPL version of anything. That's like /.'ing Freenet.

  • you know....people were stoned back in the day for such blaspemy, and at least on guy got nailed to a cross for it. for shame, taco, for shame...he he.
    good one, tho....
    xao
    • well, if you ask me, it looks like some people are still being stoned..

      right about now...

      and then posting ridiculous crap..

      i wish i was stoned. this stuff might be funnier.
      although i have gotten a few laughs today.

  • Lame (Score:1)

    by nutbar ( 138893 )
    This is the lamest April Fools joke so far.

    The idea with April fools is that you're meant to *fool* someone. This is so far fetched they could have said that the president has been replaced by a babbling ape and more people would believe it.

    No, wait...

    • Re:Lame (Score:3, Funny)

      by ultramk ( 470198 )
      This is so far fetched they could have said that the president has been replaced by a babbling ape and more people would believe it.

      ...so you're implying that hasn't already happened?

      m-

      • Re:Lame (Score:3, Interesting)

        by idfrsr ( 560314 )
        Actually current experts believe that he was replaced specifically by a chimpanzee. [bushorchimp.com]

        Curious george... I just haven't figured out who the man in the yellow hat is....
  • Get it? They closed the source... to an open source project. That's what's so funny!

    TheFrood
  • If the base is GPL, all futher developpements are GPL.

    what they can do is :
    - re-write Gnomemeeting from scratch, and it will not be Gnomemeeting anymore
    - keep the main dev tree, but write some modules in closed source. But so the Gnomemeeting core will still GPL.

    So the title of this article is wrong.
  • I for one welcome our insect...I mean gnomish...overlords...
  • 1. Release under GPL
    2. ???
    3. Close Source
    4. PROFIT!

    Then go hide from all the horrid posts today.
  • OK, a joke or two is fun, but when the entire website is useless for an entire day, it gets tiresome real quick. Why not at least make the story obviously a joke an hour after it's been posted.
  • ...i didn't pay for a subscription to this hole. You subscribers should demand a refund for today.
  • Well, all GnomeMeeting needs is a few good coders, and the free version can be forked. (And if you're interested, I suggest you grab 0.96.1 before it's withdrawn from the web site.)
  • So....BSDs merge and Gnomemeeting closes the source...so that should bring us right back to evil bits....any bets?
  • ... to be believing anything you hear. Shut down your minds and tommorow erase all record of today.
  • Look at The Onion [theonion.com]! They are also pulling a "all news are bogus" day. Man, where am I supposed to get informed today then?

    I guess I'll have to rely on good old trusted news from fark [fark.com] or bbspot [bbspot.com].
  • Man, this is worse than last year.
  • Another reason why Linux s0x0rz!

    Windows will rise up to crush the penguin!

  • Junis? (Score:3, Funny)

    by stratjakt ( 596332 ) on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @04:01PM (#5639978) Journal
    Do you remember him? Remember his harrowed tale of the afghani technology void? Remember how the editors looked like a bunch of absolute morons?

    THATs what a hoax is about, making the victims of said hoax look like fools. Thats what april fools day is about.

    Not telling stupid unfunny jokes.

    Face it. The trolls run this joint. You can't compete with them on their level. I mean, if "gnome is closed source!" and "evil bit!" are the best you got, well then just give it up and go back to your anti-america flamebaiting.

  • Lame---Lame----Lame.....

    Where is the lameness filter when we need it....
  • here [sourceforge.net]
  • ... if next year Slashdot didn't post ANY April Fools news jokes...

  • Fine by me, I don't like Gnome anyways...
  • Newsflash dude: None of these stories are funny. They are stupid. So stupid in fact that the word stupid can't possibly encompass them. Moronic perhaps or just plain idiotic don't do them justice either. If these stories were posts they would be modded down as flamebait, redundent, and your user account would probably get canned. If there is any descent fragments left in your sadistic montor-tanned mind, you will cease to posts these w`orthless pieces of crap that you call funny stories to slashdot.
  • Here's the link [3drealms.com]
  • I guess the jokes on me isn't it?
  • you don't even need to have any news in order to get slashdotted anymore...

  • Why (Score:3, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @04:22PM (#5640111)
    How come no one posted anything about the new security RFC,3514?

  • The scariest part... (Score:5, Interesting)

    by jjn1056 ( 85209 ) <jjn1056&yahoo,com> on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @04:39PM (#5640210) Homepage Journal
    I believed it for a few seconds.

    Having just returned from a focus group where a bunch of VP level types thought that Paladium was something they'd be willing to pay $500 bucks a box for.

  • fooled me (Score:5, Funny)

    by g4dget ( 579145 ) on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @04:57PM (#5640363)
    I actually thought this was the April's Fool story on the GnomeMeeting home page :-)
    Another good example of KDE/GNOME collaboration and interaction

  • Who would have thought... (Score:4, Funny)

    by Alternity ( 16492 ) on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @05:26PM (#5640547)
    that at one point the most serious part of /. would become the poll!

  • I think it raises an interesting question. What would happen if the source were to be closed? The simple answer would be to fork the code at the last open version, but how well would that work? Presumably the maintainers of the closed code (as the ownwers) would maintain ownership of the name; they would also have the reputation. What would be the ramifications for the open fork, and what would the legal implications be? How would it affect perception of OSS in general? It's an important question to c

  • for fucks sake ..... (Score:3, Interesting)

    by trouser ( 149900 ) on Tuesday April 01, 2003 @08:03PM (#5641528) Journal
    1. You can't close source a GPL program. It's a violation of the license. Surely this applies to the original author as much as anybody else. Besides, all previous releases of the code are still available under the GPL so all it would take is for keen developers to hijack the project and it breathe new life into it. Give it up for the GPL.

    2. I hate April 1st. I hate Slashdot on April 1st. I hate that where I live it is 10am April 2nd but I'm still reading these stupid April Fool's Day stories. The Slashdot editors seem to live in this little USA bubble immune from awareness of the outside world. I'm sick of polls that are not only stupid but also irrelevent to me because there is no answer suitable for a person who doesn't live in America. And most of all, every time I type './' at a shell prompt I ask myself, 'Where did those bozos get slashdot from anyway, it's clearly dotslash ?' I propose that right thinking people the world over unite in opposition to Slashdot, that we rewrite slash code in Python (I really don't like Perl. I've used it. It's ok. There's better ways of getting the same thing done. It reads like line noise. I think Larry Wall is high on goof balls. I'm not trying to start some kind of Python v. Perl flame war. ), register dotslash.org and run a fairly moderated open minded news site with no Microsoft advertisements, an acceptance of the exitence of the world outside America, no repeats of the previous day's stories, fewer stories about miniscule updates to the Linux kernel, less Apple brown nosing, even more Microsoft bashing and, most important of all, it will be 'News for Geeks'. I find the term Nerd highly pejorative.

    Sorry. I really needed to get that off my chest.

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