>From the Soundtracker discussion list. Interesting.
>> Hi
>>
>> I would like to put an XM file under the GPL. Please mail me your
comments
> on
>> doing this.
>
> Yes, do it. Think in terms of the following:
>
> XM data == source
>
> PCM (here, WAV) data == binary
>
> XM playback is a source -> binary transformation (ie. compilation)
> and MP3 encoding the PCM data is just a transform on the binary.
>
> IMHO, a very important factor in the tracking movement is/was the
> distribution of MOD data, as opposed to the distribution of say MP3
> data. If we view this as source, we see that its distribution has
> all the benefits of open source software -- not necessarily peer
> review / bug fixing, but anyone can see the details of and modify
> the music, anyone can use parts of someone else's tracks in their
> own work, anyone can rip samples out of a bunch of modules and make
> a new song from them.
>
> If musicians only distribute binaries (eg. MP3s of their work) then
> it makes it harder for other people to work with it. Sure, you can
> always get inspiration from a piece of work, but to actually rip
> instruments out of a song, to see what effect parameters were used,
> and to see the timings on some particularly funky rhythm, are all
> more easily done with access to the "source".
>
> I think it is very important for the Free Music movement for
> musicians to share source data in the Free Software sense. As an
> adjunct to that, I also think it's very important that free music
> software should always provide some kind of "source" format from
> which song data can be reconstructed, and that musicians be
> encouraged to share these source files. [Yes, that last sentence
> was directed squarely at all the coders I know are on this list :)]
>
> There are many more benefits of source availability which are unique
> to music because music has such things as remixing. It is important
> not to think of playing with someone else's source as any kind of
> debugging or attempted improvement -- you are simply doing something
> different with it. Music is art (in a much stronger sense than
> software is art ;) and any judgement of how good it is is up to an
> individual's taste.
>
> There are also some concepts of source availability which don't make
> as much sense with free music, such as recordings of live work, or
> where portions of live work are incorporated in a piece along with
> sequenced portions. One could require, for example, that the score
> be provided for any sections that were recorded live [where such a
> score existed prior to the recording!!].
>
> So, yes, I think it makes sense to apply the GPL to an XM, and far
> more than it does to attempt to apply it to a binary-only work
> such as an MP3 release, simply because we can retain the sense of
> modifiable and distributable source data.
>
> Conrad
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