On Mon, 2011-01-03 at 12:42 +0530, Raj Mathur (राज माथुर) wrote: > > like what happened to mysql > > Again, you are confused between licensing and copyright assignment. > The > MySQL problem happened because MySQL AB (and then Sun and then > Oracle) > insisted that all patch submitters hand over copyright to > MySQL/Sun/Oracle. In other words, they refused to accept patches and > features from developers unless the those developers made them > (MySQL/Sun/Oracle) owners of the code. This is NOT the normal mode > of > working of a FOSS project; for instance, the Linux kernel is also > licensed under the GPL but copyright/ownership of each portion of > code > remains with the original author.
precisely - what sustains an open source project is nothing to do with the license. It is all about the methodology of development. Develop in the open - accept contributions and build a base of developers. The larger the base, the more secure the app is from hostile take over. Developing in a closet will result in the app being in danger of take over. Sqllite is developed with no license - it is in the public domain. Apache, postgresql and many many others are developed in BSD style licenses - but since they are developed in the open with a large base of contributors, they are also immune to take over - too many copyright owners. An interesting thing is the so-called dual-licensed projects. Having a 'community' edition with limited functionality to serve a bait to buy the 'full version' which is proprietary. This is usually a massive con job. And strangely enough 99% of dual licensed projects use the GPL. I wonder why. > > MySQL's problem has nothing to do with the licence of the code. > Ownership is ownership, regardless of the licence of the object owned. > > Once again, I'll reiterate my offer of simple readings on the 'net > that > would help anyone to understand the critical differences between > licensing, copyright, trademarks, patents and ownership of > code/content. > On the other hand, I cannot do anything for those who wish to remain > ignorant so that they can continue to misinterpret things to > strengthen > their fallacious arguments. yes it is tragic how people refuse to read simple texts which would help them to understand - I feel your pain. -- regards KG http://lawgon.livejournal.com Coimbatore LUG rox http://ilugcbe.techstud.org/ -- http://mm.glug-bom.org/mailman/listinfo/linuxers
