Tim Cook wrote:
> "Ronald L. Chichester" wrote:
>
> > Unfortunately, the only REAL test of a license is how it stands up in
> > court. The GPL has never been litigated. Consequently, lawyers who
> > make recommendations on the GPL do so on some rather thin ice.
> >
> > Speaking of the memorandum, I'm trying to finish it up soon. However,
> > this is a busy time for cyberlawyers and I'm no exception. Please be
> > patient.
>
> I'm still being patient. <s>
Far more patient than I could have imagined.
>
> But, was wondering if we could expect the memorandum soon? I am
> coming to a decision point and would 'like' to have it but I will
> forge ahead if you don't think it will be ready within the next
> couple of weeks or so.
I'm still working on it. However it won't be "finished" (i.e., ready for
the legal journals) in the next few weeks. That being the case, let me
give you a brief synopsys so that you can forge ahead.
As you probably already know, the main difference between the BSD license
and the GPL license is what happens to improvements. If you make changes
to something under the BSD license, there is no obligation to give that
back to the community. The GPL requires that. If you want your code base
to remain open and to prevent forking by a larger competitor that strays
into your territory, then the GPL is the way to go. However, the downside
of the GPL is that it can be a bit tricky to link proprietary software
(closed source) code to it because the closed source code would be
"contaminated" and thus forced open IF it is used to make a GPL'd binary.
However, there is a fix to that, i.e., the LGPL. Making libraries and
intermediate linking software under the LGPL can get around those problems.
If, however, you want _someone_ to user your code, for whatever purpose
(yours or theirs), then the BSD license has much merit. It would
essentially be free code for all with essentially no restrictions. Almost
public domain. You can also look at something more restrictive like the
Mozilla license, the ZPL, or Sun's license for Open Office, but they have
extra restrictions that take you farther away from flexibility (and your
project may not have the pull or clout of a Netscape or Sun).
It might be quicker for me to handle specific questions by e-mail so that
we can move forward. The legal article has become a pandora's box.
Best wishes,
Ron
./.
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