[Elecraft] Ideas for an FT8 Radio

[Devin Butterfield]

One of the potential issues no one has mentioned is that JT and friends released the code for FT8 under the GNU GPL license. This means if you link this into any proprietary closed device or firmware, you would violate the terms of the license. 

You would have to either:

1. Write a cleanroom implementation from scratch of FT8, ensuring you didn’t use any GPL code and didn’t violate any copyrights

or

2. Build an “open” box radio, where all software is open source and licensed under the GPL

Having said that, you might want to discuss with an attorney before starting a business venture using JT’s software.

I also agree that a one-mode radio wouldn’t be of interest for very long.
—
Regards, Devin / K6DRS


> On Dec 30, 2018, at 5:44 PM, John Harper <johnae5x at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> The upcoming QSX kit from G0UPL may have FT8 capability. Hans announced
> that it will run PSK31, WSPR and RTTY natively, ie on firmware within the
> rig. Another ham, a Latvian I believe, asked "Why not FT8 too?"
> 
> Hans offered him a free QSX if he could write the code for FT8 capability
> to exist within the QSX and, last I heard, he was successful.
> 
> https://qrp-labs.com/qsx.html
> 
> John AE5X
> https://ae5x.blogspot.com
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