● 04.16.07
●● Voices of the Community on Licences and Freedom (Updated)
Posted in GNU/Linux, GPL, Law at 12:49 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz
As promised, here is a collection of articles that discuss the GPLv3, including parts which need mending and parts which address the Novell/Microsoft deal.
Just How ‘Free’ Are Open Source Licensing Models?
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Confusion and controversy about Open Source licensing did not start with current Free Software Foundation efforts to revise the GNU General Public License (GPL). Nor will emergence of an acceptable GPL V3 — or of a revised Lesser GPL or Affero GPL (thanks Dana Blankenhorn) — make OS licensing much less problematical for enterprise users. Concerns are both alleviated and complicated by a profusion of options that range from GPL’s communitarianism to the Common Public License’s collaborative focus to BSD’s laissez-faire liberality. The variety of schemes in use creates opportunity: witness, for instance, Apache’s magnificent munificence. But one must also take care to avoid bait-and-switch, pretend Open Source licenses that promise freedom in both common senses, liberty and price, but ultimately deliver neither.
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Update: Apache battles Sun over Java license
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The Apache Software Foundation is in a dispute with Sun Microsystems over a license for the Java technology compatibility kit needed for the Apache Harmony project.
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GPL 3: Will Someone Lose, No Matter What?
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On the other hand, however, The 451 Group’s Zachary suggested that perhaps Novell will be able to achieve binary compatibility with other Linux distros by working with industry organizations such as the Linux Foundation
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“There are some opportunities to stay in sync, even in a fork,” according to the analyst.
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GPLv3, Linux and GPLv2 Compatibility
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Over time, more and more projects currently released under the GPL adopt the Linux license, because it is more legally precise and more comprehensible to the average developer than either the GPLv2 or GPLv3. Eventually, Linux distributions switch over to the Linux license, leaving only a small branch of GPLv3 (or v4 or v5) code to be downloaded separately (if the user chooses to do so).
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Travel Back in Time With GPLv3
Update: the item “Survey: Open Source Developers Welcome GPL v3 Draft 3″ has just been published by ECT. We covered this OpenLogic survey before, but it’s worth repeating. The article does not contain a comprehensive summary, but the figures speak volumes.
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