Grainge, Derek
I thought that GNU differentiates between ownership and accessibility.
Yes, you are correct. GNU uses copyright law in its GPL to ensure that certain rights (freedoms) are available to all users of the software. [...]
AFAIK software is rarely patented per se. [...]
It seems to be increasingly common, even in the UK, but there is a general understanding that software patents are not enforceable in the UK today. However, many groups are lobbying for both an EU directive and a change in UK law. If it happens, we may lose access to a lot of software and there's potential for "submarine patents" like the GIF one you mentioned, which hide below the water line for years, then jump up to attack us. http://www.softwarepatents.co.uk/ One of the larger (but still small) UK "open source" supporting groups are supporting software patents at the EU level and other "open source" groups are promoting them at UK level. Amazed, I checked the Open Source Definition and the FAQ on the OSI site and discovered that nothing there prevents them... Copyright and patents are not connected directly, but the FSF Free Software Definition includes the assertion that users should have the "freedom to use" and patents can be used to block that, so the free software movement is trying to prevent their spread. It seems there is a difference in views between "free software" and "open source". http://www.fsf.org/philosophy/free-sw.html Maybe this is a better explanation of why I've argued for the correct description of free software as free software? I don't want software patents for the UK. -- MJR http://mjr.towers.org.uk/ IM: slef@jabber.at This is my home web site. This for Jabber Messaging. How's my writing? Let me know via any of my contact details.