This is my last response. IMO, this is not the right place to discuss moral issues related to Copyleft/BSD licensing.
On Mon, 8 Mar 2004, Russell McOrmond wrote: > > > When people make non-free derivatives they are "taking from me > > > without paying" in the same way as "software pirates" are > > > claimed to of non-free software. > > > > Exactly. And in the same way you did not pay Newton or Dekart for > > what you are "taking from them without paying". > > Why are you trying to confuse works for which their copyright has > expired and are in the public domain, and works under copyright I was under impression you are trying to build a moral justification for Copyleft when talking about "taking without paying". Moral frameworks do not care about copyright status. Whether something is moral or "good" does not depend on law. If you are just talking about law, then making non-free derivatives is either allowed or not, depending on the license. There is nothing to discuss here. > I realize you and I don't agree about the sustainability of the > "software manufacturing" methodologies and business models, but lets > not get too biased to entirely exclude the viewpoints of others ;-) I made no statements about sustainability of any manufacturing methodologies or business models. I was building a simple framework to explain basic differences between Copyleft and BSD-like licensing. The purpose of that framework is not to include all conflicting viewpoints about licensing effects but to highlight the cornerstone principles of the two licensing models: maximizing access to a given piece of code versus maximizing development opportunities related to that piece of code. > When you take my copyleft Free Software and make a non-free > derivative it is the same (legally, morally, etc) as if I took your > non-free software without your permission, sold many copies of it > for a profit, and never paid you a cent in royalties. Agreed. The question is different though: Is it a morally good idea to force humankind into happiness? Should todays Newtons and Dekarts use Copyleft or should they use BSD-like licensing? The answer to this question is way beyond the scope of this mailing list and the two statements under consideration. > I may not agree with your choice to use monopoly rent seeking > "manufacturing era" business models Not sure where you saw any choice or this particular choice in the two basic statements being polished on this list. Alex. -- license-discuss archive is at http://crynwr.com/cgi-bin/ezmlm-cgi?3
