Author Topic: There's still kind people out there! GPF Rexx professional  (Read 443 times)

Mentore

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There's still kind people out there! GPF Rexx professional
« on: April 17, 2025, 03:46:24 pm »
Hiya all, something good to let you know.
Recently I found I lost my registration key for the excellent GPF REXX programming IDE for OS/2 (https://ecsoft2.org/node/1322).
I decided to contact Jean-Baptiste Clerin, the developer, asking him to help me with this problem and after a few emails we agreed on this:
even if the product is no more of interest to him, he can't release it as open source because he would have to remove some cryptographic algorythm (didn't go too deep in details) and so some peculiar aspects of the program would be lost. Even so, he answered me he didn't have the time to work on it and also he got rid of his OS/2 environment, so open sourcing it was a no-no.

The solution? Creating a registration key for me and a generic-user registration key for everyone of us who wants to try the software!

Here it is:
V 1.2 (Pro)
License To: OS/2 User
License Id: 45-78-40718
Key: 50C2-9096-0C04-89B4-20DB-B246-2F1F-49E1

I'm in the process of re-installing all my OS/2 important software on a new ArcaOS VM so I'll have to work a lot. I intend to fire it up ASAP to work on some OS/2 native software. In the meantime, feel free to use the generic key as you see fit.

Mentore

Martin Iturbide

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Re: There's still kind people out there! GPF Rexx professional
« Reply #1 on: April 17, 2025, 04:31:14 pm »
Hello Mentore.

Thanks for that. So, it means that "GpfRexx" is now "AS IS" Freeware, with no support from it's author (logically). That's good.

I have that the last version is this one:
- https://hobbesarchive.com/Home/Download?path=/Hobbes/pub/os2/dev/proglang/rexx/GpfRexx_1-2c.zip

Let me know any correction.

Thanks
« Last Edit: April 17, 2025, 07:45:52 pm by Martin Iturbide »
Martin Iturbide
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Mentore

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Re: There's still kind people out there! GPF Rexx professional
« Reply #2 on: April 18, 2025, 08:08:20 am »
Hello Mentore.

Thanks for that. So, it means that "GpfRexx" is now "AS IS" Freeware, with no support from it's author (logically). That's good.

I have that the last version is this one:
- https://hobbesarchive.com/Home/Download?path=/Hobbes/pub/os2/dev/proglang/rexx/GpfRexx_1-2c.zip

Let me know any correction.

Thanks

Hi Martin,
AFAIK the release on Hobbes is the latest one. I have a mess in my personal software archive, which is scattered in three PCs and heavily unorganized, so I can't really confirm it's complete - still I can't find real differences in the archives I possess, so I guess that's complete.

I encourage you all to try this interesting piece of software.

Mentore

Jan-Erik Lärka

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Re: There's still kind people out there! GPF Rexx professional
« Reply #3 on: April 18, 2025, 02:19:08 pm »
Would he agree to that someone sign a NDA (Non Disclosure Agreement)
and either let that person remove the code or himself if we'd scramble money to do it?

At a later stage it would be interesting if Gpf Rexx could work with ooRexx 5.x

Martin Iturbide

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Re: There's still kind people out there! GPF Rexx professional
« Reply #4 on: April 18, 2025, 04:23:57 pm »
Hi Jan-Erik
Would he agree to that someone sign a NDA (Non Disclosure Agreement)
and either let that person remove the code or himself if we'd scramble money to do it?

At a later stage it would be interesting if Gpf Rexx could work with ooRexx 5.x

I think I contacted the author long time ago. If memory serves me correctly, the issue was that the source code of GpfRexx contains the scramble procedure of any work created with that tool. That will mean that you can de-compile any software created GpfRexx if the author releases the source code. I think he does not want to have any kind of problems with that.

Maybe with a NDA, if someone gets the source code, to open source it will be required not to include that scramble procedure and maybe change the software in a way that the scramble code is customized by any software author.

Regards
Martin Iturbide
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Mentore

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Re: There's still kind people out there! GPF Rexx professional
« Reply #5 on: April 24, 2025, 04:16:25 pm »
Hi Jan-Erik
Would he agree to that someone sign a NDA (Non Disclosure Agreement)
and either let that person remove the code or himself if we'd scramble money to do it?

At a later stage it would be interesting if Gpf Rexx could work with ooRexx 5.x

I think I contacted the author long time ago. If memory serves me correctly, the issue was that the source code of GpfRexx contains the scramble procedure of any work created with that tool. That will mean that you can de-compile any software created GpfRexx if the author releases the source code. I think he does not want to have any kind of problems with that.

Maybe with a NDA, if someone gets the source code, to open source it will be required not to include that scramble procedure and maybe change the software in a way that the scramble code is customized by any software author.

Regards

During our mail exchange, Mr. Clerin was thinking about releasing the source code to the public, after removing all the cryptographic parts that might allow someone to decompile GPF REXX built programs. Afterwards, he decided to just lend me a personal license to replace my original lost one and a generic OS/2 license, so that there was no need for him to get up and running an OS/2 environment which he didn't have anymore.

This is what I was able to get, and I don't think he really wants to go deeper that way. But if someone is willing to ask him, maybe we could write him a petition with an NDA to continue GPF REXX development and maybe change the REXX core used, removing the registration code, or something similar. I'm thinking a mixed style license could do the job (of course no GPL, and this means that no open source software would be attached to the software or we'd have to disclose all the source code).

Mentore