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Re:US military UAVs migrate to Linux by Jtsummers on Tuesday May 06, 2014 @10:01PM (#7708236)
There are already pieces of software whose licenses preclude military use. One I saw once was a smalltalk implementation.

EDIT: my recollection was off. They don't strictly bar it from those fields but may require a non-free license.

http://www.exept.de/en/products/smalltalkx/download

Re:US military UAVs migrate to Linux by TallGuyShort on Tuesday May 06, 2014 @10:26PM (#7708308)
Parts of the CERN Colt library expressly forbid military applications: http://acs.lbl.gov/software/colt/license.html. It's probably impossible to enforce, but it's a noble statement, IMO.
Re:US military UAVs migrate to Linux by Sanddancer on Wednesday May 07, 2014 @04:52AM (#7709224)
The problem is that the world's not so black and white. For example, the Army Corps of Engineering does substantial work restoring ecologically sensitive areas, maintaining harbors, etc. Would they be precluded from using this software to generate histograms related to a wetlands restoration project?
Re:US military UAVs migrate to Linux by Jtsummers on Wednesday May 07, 2014 @07:34AM (#7709599)
I think that's part of the reason for Smalltalk/X's less-than-full ban. Ambiguity is removed because potential licensees can tell them what their intended use is.

On the other hand, perhaps we should be breaking organizations out of the DoD umbrella. Do we need domestic public servant driven civil engineering projects to be under the Army? Maybe a Civil Corps of Engineers should be established to take over their non-defense projects (or more realistically, spun off).