> Frank, I think you're missing the point.  The essence of open source
> is that any person who gets a copy of the program or source code has
> the same rights as the person they got it from (except for certain
> rights of ownership).  This is not the case for Kermit.
> 
It depends on what you mean by certain rights of ownership.

> The NetBSD Project distributes open source.  If Kermit wants to keep
> its head in the waters and and remain closed, that's fine; just don't
> expect us to make exceptions for you.
> 
It's not a question of head in water.  It's a one of how you support a
software project for decade after decade, in which computer professionals
are involved full time, relationships with other development projects and
organizations are built up, continuity and support are there for the end
users over the long term, and commitments can be made and lived up to.

In the 70s and early 80s, it was common for free software projects to be
subsidized; it isn't any more.  Other projects have licensing and funding
models that are different from ours, but they don't work for us.  We know,
because we've tried most of them.

If the NetBSD project would like to include C-Kermit in its distribution,
I'm here to try to work it out.  I confess I don't know exactly who the
players are, so I can't tell what constitutes an official answer.  If
somebody with the authority to say "yes", "no", or "let's talk some more"
will speak up (maybe it's you, and you have?) then we can move on.
Just let me know whether it's worth pursing any further.

Thanks!

- Frank