-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 Hi.
I have questions about the licence of a software collection I am trying to package. Here is a copy of this licence, al real names removed to avoid unwanted googling. ==================================================================== FOOBAR PUBLIC LICENCE Terms and conditions for using, copying, distribution and modification of FooBar versions 2.x and 3.x. You acknowledge to be informed about the following facts, and you accept the consequences: - FooBar is a "soft-publication" for the scientific community, intented to offer reproducible research in image processing. - FooBar is maintained by the image department of the XYZ, a public French laboratory associated to the CNRS 0123 unit. - The image department is founded by the XYZ only, using public funds and private grants for software development. - FooBar has been implemented for research purposes only; it comes therefore without any warranty. - The FooBar compiler and the system libraries are known to run on some computer models and operating systems only. - The XYZ may not maintain this software in the future. - The XYZ can not help any user to install nor to use the software. - The XYZ may not publish all of the code contained in the various versions of FooBar. - For transparency, the published code contains the source of the mathematical algorithms developed at the XYZ. You are allowed to copy, modify and redistribute these programs. The XYZ claims to impose on the diffusion and on the use of its software the same rules than the well-known rules which apply to paper publication. You agree to: - inform without delay the XYZ about any contract between yourself or your department and any private or public organization, in the case where its execution uses an algorithm (modified or not) included in FooBar. You will inform this organization about the origin of these algorithm by writing in the contract the use of the FooBar software. - make mention in all products (as computer programs or scientific papers) which take advantage of an algorithm included in FooBar (modified or not), of the use of this software together with the name(s) of the author(s) written in the header of the corresponding module and with the address of the XYZ and of other laboratories implied in the development, if any. Address: FooBar, XYZ, Somewhere, France. E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Last version available at: http://www.xyz.server.fr/Xyz/FooBar ========================================================================= Clearly, the licence is not DFSG-free, because of the 2nd part, 2nd item, "inform without delay the XYZ about any contract between yourself" (outcast testcase). But, I wonder if this licence has any legal value. It requires me to inform and mention the authors if I use the *algorithms* used by this software. Is it a kind of "algorithm copyright"? I guess no such copyright can possibly exist. If I'm right, then this licence is void, then the copyright falls back to the standard Berne copyright convention, which means non-free, no distribution, and so on. Could someone confirm or correct my assumptions? Thanks - -- Nicolas LIMARE smtp:[EMAIL PROTECTED] pgp:0xFA423F4F xmpp:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://nicolas.limare.net -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.4.6 (GNU/Linux) iD8DBQFHAjeevviFAPpCP08RAjJWAJ44Az2OJT/xUiH5anj0RX95AVemHgCeNx4b IvO1FvQXRWDBtJT8L4BojMk= =Ynu7 -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]