Gargoyle Forum

Eric: Firstly congratulations on the release on the release of V1. This is truly an amazing product and I look forward to using and supporting it in the years to come.
However I am concerned that some people would be turned off by the gargoyle logo.
The logo would not be an issue if users were not exposed to it. However the standout feature of Gargoyle is that it enables all users to keep track of their quota usage. But to use this feature they must be exposed to the logo.
So my question is, "Can I remove the logo under the terms of the licence and keep everything else intact (ie. Gargoyle name etc.)?"
I've read through the license at http://www.gargoyle-router.com/about.php and it seems to preclude alteration to the "web interface". That is why I'm raising the question.

PS. A more benign logo like hello kitty would have universal appeal but I suppose it's too far down the track for that.
On the other hand Firefox is available in different guises such as IceCat http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_IceCat so maybe you would consider allowing a change like this too

Oh, absolutely you can change the logo. I think you misunderstood the addition to the GPL that applies.

Because the GPL generally applies to binary programs, and a large portion of Gargoyle are scripts and not statically linked C programs, it is unclear how to interpret the GPL. There are 2 parts to the addition:

1) If you use any of Gargoyle's code in your web interface your web interface must be GPL (with this addition/clarification)

2) You are permitted to improve/extend the web interface to configure proprietary back-end programs, so long as the additions to the web interface fall under the GPL. The back-end proprietary programs can remain proprietary.

So, feel free to swap in whatever image/theme you want. The only caveat is that code/image is GPL and you can't complain if someone takes that image and modifies it for their own purpose, also releasing it under the GPL.

On another note, I never thought of the Gargoyle image as being offensive. I suspect you're having issues with devout Christians who have issues with the resemblance to a devil, and yet the idea of a Gargoyle comes directly from Medieval (Christian) architecture. From Wikipedia:

A local legend that sprang up around the name of St. Romanus ("Romain") (AD 631–641), the former chancellor of the Merovingian king Clotaire II who was made bishop of Rouen, relates how he delivered the country around Rouen from a monster called Gargouille or Goji, having the creature captured by the only volunteer, a condemned man. The gargoyle's grotesque form was said to scare off evil spirits so they were used for protection. . . .

Many medieval cathedrals included gargoyles and chimeras. The most famous examples are those of Notre Dame de Paris.

So, Gargoyles have a long tradition in the church as something meant to ward off evil spirits. The reason the name/image was chosen for the project is because Gargoyle is meant to ward off evil/unwanted packets on your network

Thanks for the licence explanation and the history lesson.
As you said the gargoyle was designed to scare off evil spirits. I suggest many people would naturally tend to react this way too, regardless of their religious beliefs.

@ Uncle John

I had a little chuckle over this one

While I do not give a toss about christian sensibilities regarding the Gargoyle logo , I do however support uncle john with his suggestion that one can change/remove the logo on the user's quota-usage page.

It would also be useful if the user could see some more info about their usage - e.g. combined up/download for the last couple of days as well as totals for the month.