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1 GNU LESSER GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE
2 Version 2.1, February 1999
3
4 Copyright (C) 1991, 1999 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
5 59 Temple Place, Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307 USA
6 Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies
7 of this license document, but changing it is not allowed.
8
9[This is the first released version of the Lesser GPL. It also counts
10 as the successor of the GNU Library Public License, version 2, hence
11 the version number 2.1.]
12
13 Preamble
14
15 The licenses for most software are designed to take away your
16freedom to share and change it. By contrast, the GNU General Public
17Licenses are intended to guarantee your freedom to share and change
18free software--to make sure the software is free for all its users.
19
20 This license, the Lesser General Public License, applies to some
21specially designated software packages--typically libraries--of the
22Free Software Foundation and other authors who decide to use it. You
23can use it too, but we suggest you first think carefully about whether
24this license or the ordinary General Public License is the better
25strategy to use in any particular case, based on the explanations below.
26
27 When we speak of free software, we are referring to freedom of use,
28not price. Our General Public Licenses are designed to make sure that
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31it if you want it; that you can change the software and use pieces of
32it in new free programs; and that you are informed that you can do
33these things.
34
35 To protect your rights, we need to make restrictions that forbid
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40 For example, if you distribute copies of the library, whether gratis
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48 We protect your rights with a two-step method: (1) we copyright the
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60 Finally, software patents pose a constant threat to the existence of
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67 Most GNU software, including some libraries, is covered by the
68ordinary GNU General Public License. This license, the GNU Lesser
69General Public License, applies to certain designated libraries, and
70is quite different from the ordinary General Public License. We use
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82 We call this license the "Lesser" General Public License because it
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105 Although the Lesser General Public License is Less protective of the
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117 GNU LESSER GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE
118 TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR COPYING, DISTRIBUTION AND MODIFICATION
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120 0. This License Agreement applies to any software library or other
121program which contains a notice placed by the copyright holder or
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