Which Python web framework is most like Ruby on Rails?

Kent Johnson kent at kentsjohnson.com
Wed Dec 21 05:11:02 CET 2005

Paul Rubin wrote:
> Kent Johnson <kent at kentsjohnson.com> writes:

>>>Remember that the GPL only applies to the code of Karrigell
>>>itself, not to stuff that you write using it.
>>IANAL but that is not my understanding of the GPL. GPL version 2
>>section 2.b) reads, "You must cause any work that you distribute or
>>publish, that in whole or in part contains or is derived from the
>>Program or any part thereof, to be licensed as a whole at no charge to
>>all third parties under the terms of this License." My server would
>>certainly be a work that in part contains Karrigell.
> Your web app and html files would IMO be considered a separate work,
> like C programs that you compile with GCC.  If they don't contain actual
> Karrigell code and they're not derived from Karrigell code, then I'd
> think 2.b) doesn't apply.  The test I'd use is, imagine you don't have
> the Karrigell distro and you only have a printout of the documentation.
> Can you write your app from just the docs?  IANAL, etc., and to be
> safe, you could simply ask the Karrigell author.

You've lost me here. The server certainly would contain Karrigell code, it wouldn't 
function without it. I don't understand the analogy to GCC, the web site is not something 
that is compiled with Karrigell. Karrigell is a library or framework that is an essential 
part of the server. I don't know how I would write the app without Karrigell.

A FAQ entry attempts to shed light on the question but just confuses me more. "If the two 
programs remain well separated ... then you can treat them as two separate programs--but 
you have to do it properly. The issue is simply one of form." WTF?

I confess, one reason I stay away from the GPL and even LGPL is because no matter how many 
times I read them I'm not sure what they really say. FAQs like the above certainly don't 
help much. In contrast the (BSD-style) CherryPy license is crystal clear.


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