GPLv2 or GPLv2 compatible Windows 7 TaskBar library?

Question

I wish to integrate the new Windows 7 Taskbar Features into a GPLv2 licensed open source project (EVEMon). Microsoft's excellent Windows API Code Pack would work well however it is licensed under MS-pl which is incompatible with the GPLv2.

I have found a Windows 7 Taskbar project on CodePlex, licensed under the MIT Licence which is GPLv2 compatible. However only a handful of the features have been implemented as yet:

• Progress Bars
• Icon Overlays
• Taskbar Thumbnails

My questions are as follows:

1. Is there another GPLv2 compatible .NET library for interop with the Windows 7 Taskbar?
2. If not, I know nothing about COM, are there any good websites or books that can bring me up to speed so I can contribute to the above project, or if required roll my own?

TIA

Answer 1

Microsoft has released a Windows® API Code Pack, which

...provides a source code library that can be used to access some features of Windows 7 and Windows Vista from managed code. These Windows features are not available to developers today in the .NET Framework.

Answer 2

Take a look at this COM interface, it should have all you need. However, i know about as much COM as you do, though i hope that points you in the right direction. This link to pinvoke.net may help, and this SO question says you need the Windows 7 SDK (though that may only be for C++, i'm not sure)

Answer 3

I'm afraid such a library is impossible legally: it would be strictly dependent on proprietary software which makes GPL licensing illegal. If it was a library that can work with a number of backends, proprietary Win7 being one of them, it would be OK but a code that is non-functional without a proprietary component is not GPL-licenseable.

(Debian project refused to incorporate Gameboy emulator in the free repositories, claiming its non-compliance with GPL due to requirement for proprietary ROM images. It was allowed only after the first open-source game for Gameboy was written.)