On Fri, Aug 1, 2008 at 12:43 PM, eliben <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
>
>
> Alan G Isaac wrote:
> >
> > On Fri, 1 Aug 2008, eliben apparently wrote:
> >> I wouldn't imagine anyone would hesitate borrowing code
> >> from a demo because of a lack of license.
> >
> > It depends on what you mean by "lack of a license".
> > I think what most people (myself included) would
> > like to see for a demo script is "this file is in the public
> > domain". That is not exactly a "license", but it roughly
> > means "use this however you want without worrying about
> > any restrictions, not even attribution requirements".
> >
> > I do not think the LGPL generally makes sense (literally)
> > for such scripts:
> > http://www.gnu.org/licenses/lgpl.html
> >
> > If public domain is uncomfortable,
> > then perhaps MIT or BSD would be comfortable.
> > <URL:http://www.opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.html>
> >
> > Of course, s/he who has the copyright chooses the license.
> >
> > Cheers,
> > Alan Isaac
> >
>
> Although we're markedly off-topic here, I want to mention that I've battled
> with the question of licensing my code. It's documented here:
>
> http://eli.thegreenplace.net/2006/04/13/choosing-an-open-source-license-for-my-code/
>
> The choice of LGPL eventually stems from my desire to promote free
> software,
> and prevent abuse. True, for demos it makes less sense than for full-blown
> libraries, but still...
>
> Consider this: the demo teaches someone how to make some interface/code
> work. He got it for free, because I've placed my demo publicly online. But
> he may want to incorporate it in his program, and hide from his users how
> he
> does the thing the demo taught him, winning a competitive advantage. This
> isn't fair, and LGPL prevents such use, while in general allowing one to
> use
> the code in commercial applications.
>
My understanding of what can and cannot be licensed, at least in U.S. law
and (as far as I know) some other areas as well, is that what you are trying
to guard is something you cannot guard unless you get a patent.
The specific text of a program, its concrete form, and perhaps other
"concrete implementation" features are covered (or at least can be covered)
by copyright.
Knowledge, including "how he does the thing the demo taught him," is not
subject to copyright. That is, if he legally reads your code, and clones
functionality, there is no way barring a software patent that you can
restrict this.
I personally regard viral licenses with caution: that is, if the copyright
says, "Don't build on or extend this unless you want your work to be covered
by my chosen license," I will be extremely cautious about building off of
them. Under the LGPV, if I incorporate one of your demos into my own 2000
line program, your requirements of fairness require me to place my entire
2000 line program under the terms of the license you chose.
This is a significant deterrent to some programmers.
>
> Eli
>
>
> --
> View this message in context:
> http://www.nabble.com/more-demos-of-mpl-with-wxPython-tp18770262p18779533.html
> Sent from the matplotlib - users mailing list archive at Nabble.com.
>
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------
> This SF.Net email is sponsored by the Moblin Your Move Developer's
> challenge
> Build the coolest Linux based applications with Moblin SDK & win great
> prizes
> Grand prize is a trip for two to an Open Source event anywhere in the world
> http://moblin-contest.org/redirect.php?banner_id=100&url=/
> _______________________________________________
> Matplotlib-users mailing list
> Matplotlib-users@lists.sourceforge.net
> https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/matplotlib-users
>
--
-- Jonathan Hayward, [EMAIL PROTECTED]
** To see an award-winning website with stories, essays, artwork,
** games, and a four-dimensional maze, why not visit my home page?
** All of this is waiting for you at http://JonathansCorner.com
++ Would you like to curl up with one of my hardcover books?
++ You can now get my books from http://CJSHayward.com
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
This SF.Net email is sponsored by the Moblin Your Move Developer's challenge
Build the coolest Linux based applications with Moblin SDK & win great prizes
Grand prize is a trip for two to an Open Source event anywhere in the world
http://moblin-contest.org/redirect.php?banner_id=100&url=/
_______________________________________________
Matplotlib-users mailing list
Matplotlib-users@lists.sourceforge.net
https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/matplotlib-users
