Kobo runs linux and busybox

billingd · 08-10-2010, 08:44 PM

A week later: Apologies for the tone of this post. It was ill-considered and rude. I did change the title on the message shortly after I posted, but this didn't update the original thread title. Thanks to the moderator who fixed it. I have avoided saying anything else for a week so things can die a natural death. I'd just add that the responses were measured and well deserved. billingd 2010-08-17

Borders Australia have released an SD card firmware (1.4) image links for AU/NZ

A quick analysis shows that it contains runs linux - which we already knew - and ships with a busybox binary that contains a GPL V2 licence string. I have raised the small matter of the source code with Borders Australia. I wait with baited breath for not much to happen.

US readers may have more joy as there are a number of court cases active there. See groklaw for a discussion.

#######################################

For the technically inclined, download bordersau-full-1_4.tgz. Download size is 123 MB.

As the .tgz suffix implies, it is a gzipped tar file. This is a standard unix thing. There are many Windows utilities that will open it, including 7-zip.

The file has been tarred, then compressed twice with gzip. A more descriptive name would be bordersau-full-1_4.tar.gz.gz

I have generated a list of files and posted it on the other thread.

$ gunzip bordersau-full-1_4.tgz
$ tar tzf bordersau-full-1_4.tar > bordersau-full-1_4.txt

Given the file structure and presence of busybox, it is almost certain that the KOBO runs linux and used GPLed code.

If we look at the busybox binary:
$tar --strip-components=2 -xzf bordersau-full-1_4.tar ./bin/busybox
$strings busybox

we see:
Copyright (C) 1998-2006
Erik Andersen, Rob Landley, and others.
Licensed under GPLv2.

Oh dear.

sabredog · 08-10-2010, 08:56 PM

I will wait and see what Kobo or Borders say before accusing them of GPL violation or running to a litigation lawyer.

pholy · 08-10-2010, 09:25 PM

I'm hoping that now that everyone has v1.4 released to their markets, Kobo will get around to releasing the GPL source code they used. That should be the kernel, busybox, and several libraries. I doubt that it will include anything that displays the database or Kobo format books, and it certainly won't include the Adobe code.

Jinke, Bookeen, and Foxit have all released that much.

Solicitous · 08-10-2010, 09:44 PM

Forgive my ignorance but how is the Kobo running Linux a GPL violation? In the user guide one will notice the extensive pages dedicated to providing a copy of the GPL (which they are required to do) and other information regarding other packages used on the Kobo. In regard to the source, GPL'd source of distributed binaries do not need to be made public. They do need to be provided upon request, but Kobo do not and are not obligated to go "here is the image, oh and here is the source". They are obligated however to provide the source code when asked.

Some companies prefer to just provide the source along with the binaries and alleviate any issues of people wanting to request the code (ie: they provide it regardless).

IF, and this is IF Kobo have been approached and a copy of the source code has been requested, and Kobo have failed/refused to deliver, then they could be in violation of the GPL.

JCKobo · 08-10-2010, 10:12 PM

Hi everyone.

Solicitous is right that Kobo is bound to deliver the source code for GPL licensed applications (and LGPL licensed libraries) upon request. We have no requirement per the GPL to proactively make it available.

However, rather than have all of you email me and ask for the code individually, we've posted the source code to the applications in question, patches to the original code that we have modified, as well as the code to a special secret that you may have found in the Kobo Reader already to our github account.

You can find it here:
http://github.com/kobolabs/

If a moderator is reading this, I would appreciate a change in the subject line. Kobo takes our GPL commitments very seriously, as you have hopefully seen via our full disclosure of what open source software we are using as well as our posting of this code.

sabredog · 08-10-2010, 10:23 PM

Many thanks JCKobo. This should be the end of the matter.

JCKobo · 08-10-2010, 10:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sabredog

Many thanks JCKobo. This should be the end of the matter.

Thanks - would you mind changing your subject line on your original post? I wouldn't want someone just skimming the forums to get the wrong impression.

sabredog · 08-10-2010, 11:09 PM

JCKobo

Love to see the title change but I am not the OP of the thread.

I will put a request to the mods.

JCKobo · 08-10-2010, 11:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sabredog

JCKobo

Love to see the title change but I am not the OP of the thread.

I will put a request to the mods.

Oops - sorry I thought billingd had replied. Thanks.

JCKobo · 08-10-2010, 11:43 PM

Looks like the subject was updated. Thanks!

zoran · 08-11-2010, 12:36 AM

I cannot recall how this thread was named before, but I simply
dislike it to be renamed on demand. Next step would be to
change the content of posts on demand?
If something important has to be said, new thread has to be
open and all content might be there. People have their own
minds and it is the way forums work.

sabredog · 08-11-2010, 12:52 AM

Normally I would certainly agree with you. However the thread title was inflammatory, questioning Kobo's use of Linux/GPL.

Best to change it to be less aggressive.

billingd · 08-11-2010, 03:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JCKobo

Hi everyone.

Solicitous is right that Kobo is bound to deliver the source code for GPL licensed applications (and LGPL licensed libraries) upon request. We have no requirement per the GPL to proactively make it available.

Fantastic.

Sorry about the title. There was going to be some qualification on it. I was reading what I had written and reconsidering the wording - then the phone rang and I stupidly hit the post button.

kingduct · 08-11-2010, 11:28 AM

Good job Kobo!

pholy · 08-11-2010, 04:25 PM

Thank you, JC. I was pretty sure you would publish this fairly quickly. It's just not efficient to handle individual requests. I'm cloning it as I write, and look forward to studying it for a long time before I start changing things. Anybody want to use a Bluetooth keyboard for dictionary lookup or annotations? Or maybe remote control?

08-10-2010, 08:44 PM	#1
billingd Enthusiast Posts: 42 Karma: 8616 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Melbourne, Australia Device: Kobo	Kobo runs linux and busybox A week later: Apologies for the tone of this post. It was ill-considered and rude. I did change the title on the message shortly after I posted, but this didn't update the original thread title. Thanks to the moderator who fixed it. I have avoided saying anything else for a week so things can die a natural death. I'd just add that the responses were measured and well deserved. billingd 2010-08-17 Borders Australia have released an SD card firmware (1.4) image links for AU/NZ A quick analysis shows that it contains runs linux - which we already knew - and ships with a busybox binary that contains a GPL V2 licence string. I have raised the small matter of the source code with Borders Australia. I wait with baited breath for not much to happen. US readers may have more joy as there are a number of court cases active there. See groklaw for a discussion. ####################################### For the technically inclined, download bordersau-full-1_4.tgz. Download size is 123 MB. As the .tgz suffix implies, it is a gzipped tar file. This is a standard unix thing. There are many Windows utilities that will open it, including 7-zip. The file has been tarred, then compressed twice with gzip. A more descriptive name would be bordersau-full-1_4.tar.gz.gz I have generated a list of files and posted it on the other thread. $ gunzip bordersau-full-1_4.tgz $ tar tzf bordersau-full-1_4.tar > bordersau-full-1_4.txt Given the file structure and presence of busybox, it is almost certain that the KOBO runs linux and used GPLed code. If we look at the busybox binary: $tar --strip-components=2 -xzf bordersau-full-1_4.tar ./bin/busybox $strings busybox we see: Copyright (C) 1998-2006 Erik Andersen, Rob Landley, and others. Licensed under GPLv2. Oh dear. Last edited by billingd; 08-16-2010 at 11:01 PM. Reason: Add apology

08-10-2010, 10:12 PM	#5
JCKobo Kobo Product Guy Posts: 244 Karma: 36848 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Toronto Device: Kobo Vox	Hi everyone. Solicitous is right that Kobo is bound to deliver the source code for GPL licensed applications (and LGPL licensed libraries) upon request. We have no requirement per the GPL to proactively make it available. However, rather than have all of you email me and ask for the code individually, we've posted the source code to the applications in question, patches to the original code that we have modified, as well as the code to a special secret that you may have found in the Kobo Reader already to our github account. You can find it here: http://github.com/kobolabs/ If a moderator is reading this, I would appreciate a change in the subject line. Kobo takes our GPL commitments very seriously, as you have hopefully seen via our full disclosure of what open source software we are using as well as our posting of this code. Last edited by JCKobo; 08-10-2010 at 10:15 PM.

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08-10-2010, 08:56 PM	#2
sabredog Geographically Restricted Posts: 2,629 Karma: 14933353 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Perth, Australia Device: Sony PRS-T3, Kindle Voyage, iPad Air2, Nexus7v2	I will wait and see what Kobo or Borders say before accusing them of GPL violation or running to a litigation lawyer.

08-10-2010, 09:25 PM	#3
pholy Booklegger Posts: 1,801 Karma: 7999816 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada Device: BeBook(1 & 2010), PEZ, PRS-505, Kobo BT, PRS-T1, Playbook, Kobo Touch	I'm hoping that now that everyone has v1.4 released to their markets, Kobo will get around to releasing the GPL source code they used. That should be the kernel, busybox, and several libraries. I doubt that it will include anything that displays the database or Kobo format books, and it certainly won't include the Adobe code. Jinke, Bookeen, and Foxit have all released that much.

08-10-2010, 09:44 PM	#4
Solicitous Wizard Posts: 1,434 Karma: 1525776 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: TAS, Australia Device: Astak Pocket Pro (Black), 2 x Kindle WiFi (Graphite), iPod Touch 4G	Forgive my ignorance but how is the Kobo running Linux a GPL violation? In the user guide one will notice the extensive pages dedicated to providing a copy of the GPL (which they are required to do) and other information regarding other packages used on the Kobo. In regard to the source, GPL'd source of distributed binaries do not need to be made public. They do need to be provided upon request, but Kobo do not and are not obligated to go "here is the image, oh and here is the source". They are obligated however to provide the source code when asked. Some companies prefer to just provide the source along with the binaries and alleviate any issues of people wanting to request the code (ie: they provide it regardless). IF, and this is IF Kobo have been approached and a copy of the source code has been requested, and Kobo have failed/refused to deliver, then they could be in violation of the GPL.

08-10-2010, 10:23 PM	#6
sabredog Geographically Restricted Posts: 2,629 Karma: 14933353 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Perth, Australia Device: Sony PRS-T3, Kindle Voyage, iPad Air2, Nexus7v2	Many thanks JCKobo. This should be the end of the matter.

08-10-2010, 11:09 PM	#8
sabredog Geographically Restricted Posts: 2,629 Karma: 14933353 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Perth, Australia Device: Sony PRS-T3, Kindle Voyage, iPad Air2, Nexus7v2	JCKobo Love to see the title change but I am not the OP of the thread. I will put a request to the mods.

08-10-2010, 11:43 PM	#10
JCKobo Kobo Product Guy Posts: 244 Karma: 36848 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Toronto Device: Kobo Vox	Looks like the subject was updated. Thanks!

08-11-2010, 12:36 AM	#11
zoran himself Posts: 576 Karma: 11226 Join Date: May 2010 Device: Kobo	I cannot recall how this thread was named before, but I simply dislike it to be renamed on demand. Next step would be to change the content of posts on demand? If something important has to be said, new thread has to be open and all content might be there. People have their own minds and it is the way forums work.

08-11-2010, 12:52 AM	#12
sabredog Geographically Restricted Posts: 2,629 Karma: 14933353 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Perth, Australia Device: Sony PRS-T3, Kindle Voyage, iPad Air2, Nexus7v2	Normally I would certainly agree with you. However the thread title was inflammatory, questioning Kobo's use of Linux/GPL. Best to change it to be less aggressive.

08-11-2010, 11:28 AM	#14
kingduct Enthusiast Posts: 45 Karma: 220 Join Date: Jul 2010 Device: none	Good job Kobo!

08-11-2010, 04:25 PM	#15
pholy Booklegger Posts: 1,801 Karma: 7999816 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada Device: BeBook(1 & 2010), PEZ, PRS-505, Kobo BT, PRS-T1, Playbook, Kobo Touch	Thank you, JC. I was pretty sure you would publish this fairly quickly. It's just not efficient to handle individual requests. I'm cloning it as I write, and look forward to studying it for a long time before I start changing things. Anybody want to use a Bluetooth keyboard for dictionary lookup or annotations? Or maybe remote control?

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