In reply to:

All of my own work released so far has been public domain, and I have seen at least two places where the code (especially so in the case of a device driver) has simply been lifted, comments and all, and dropped under a GPL without acknowledgement or contact from the perpetrator. I have been tolerant of this so far, as I considered that it benefits everyone in spite of me having a horse and cart trampled through my rights as a developer.

When you release something into the public domain, you are specifically giving up your rights, and it is perfectly within anyone else's rights to take your code and redistribute it, with or without modifications, under a license of their own choosing. They needn't even give you acknowledgment as, technically, you've given up all ownership interest in the work.

This is precisely why defending the GPL is important. The GPL offers a way to release code generously while still retaining your copyright and guaranteeing the code will always be available under the same terms, no matter what anyone does with it. Nobody else can release the code under lesser or more restrictive terms. You may think people are zealots to enforce the terms under which they release their code, but really what they are doing is no different from your own expectation that the code you write be of benefit to everyone. The difference is that the GPL offers some legal recourse if someone doesn't play by the rules.

I don't agree with the sentiment that using GPL'd software is hazardous in that you're followed by a bunch of zealots who check compliance, because it's very easy to comply and as long as you make that effort, nobody will bother you. (In fact, you'll get praise.) It's even easier to comply if you're already complying in spirit. But you have to comply, especially if you are in the business of selling something that includes GPL'd code -- then it's your responsibility to make sure you are following the licensing terms to the letter.

In the case of Empeg Ltd, I'm confident they will do the right thing. I realize the GPL issue probably only affects their developer releases (other than the kernel modifications, which have always been available) so I am especially grateful for them to correct the GPL issues rather than terminate the developer releases entirely. I'm still glad the issue was brought forward, however, and it's probably better that it was brought forward now rather than later.

-v