Redland RDF Application Framework - Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is the license?

   Redland is Free Software, or Open Source if you prefer.

2. Why is the code released under two licenses - LGPL and MPL?

   I originally considered just a GPL version of the library but I considered this too restrictive, hence the LGPL version. LGPL also allows the user, at their choice, to license the software under the GPL (See LGPL Term 3) in which case this software can also be used with all the other GPLed code -- see next answer.

   As an alternative, the entire library can be used under the terms of the Mozilla Public License V1.1 which allow you use it in other ways that aren't so virus-y (ahem) as the (L)GPL.

3. Can I link this library with code under license XXX?

   Firstly, IANAL however here is an overview of how you can use this software:

   • If you choose the LGPL/GPL licenses, the GNU project list of licenses page says that you can link the following licensed software with the code:
     GPLed, LGPLed, Guile, GNU Ada, X11, Cryptix, modified BSD, zlib, W3C, Berkeley Database, Python 1.6a2 earlier, Perl (as GPL), ncftp Artistic, Netscape JavaScript
     and not these types:
     Arphic, original BSD, Apache 1.0, Apache 1.1, Zope, Python 1.6b1 or later, OpenLDAP V2.3, IBM PL 1.0, Phorum, LaTeX (LPPL), MPL, NOSL 1.0, Interbase 1.0, Sun PL, NPL, Jabber OSL 1.0, Sun ISSL 1.0, QPL (without notice), Open Compatibility, PHP 2.02, Artistic, APPL, Sun CSL, Plan 9, Open Public License, Sun SSC(FR) 11
     check the link above for updates, since the above is not a definitive list.
   • If you choose the MPL, you should be able to link with most anything else except you might have problems distributing stuff which includes GPLed/LGPLed parts, in which case, choose the LGPL or GPL licenses.
4. Why is Redland written in C?

   Writing in C allows reuse in lots of ways and the library should be easy to call from languages since most of them allow importing of C libraries or calling of C functions.

   C is also more "portable" (subject to the usual C problems) and should be compilable on many different systems. I have access to Linux 2.2.x, Solaris 2.5 (Sparc), Solaris 7 (Sparc) and HP-UX 10 and it configured, built and tested out of the box on all of these.

   See also the W3C Library note on C++ in C which covers some of these issues, although I wrote the library before finding this.

5. Why is it called Redland?

   Well, librdf was too boring :-)! I work for the University of Bristol and Redland is an area of Bristol which has an 'R' and a 'D' in the name. Plus I couldn't find a decent word with the letters 'RDF' in it.

6. Redmond?

   No, Redland - not related to an area near Seattle, Washington State, USA home to an illegal monopolist.

7. Where is the Java interface?

   As of 2001-08-28 it is now added - see the java API

8. Does it support a query language?
   

   Not yet, but if it did, it would look like the Squish Query language or the RDQL RDF Data Query Language

Copyright 2000-2001 Dave Beckett, Institute for Learning and Research Technology, University of Bristol