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Forget the library .. time to open-source the code? (Announce)

posted by mbbrutman Homepage, Washington, USA, 14.03.2010, 15:01

> There is no easy answer. I don't see any harm in posting sources, esp. if
> you don't intend to continue development. (For instance, ADOM doesn't want
> secrets spoiled or too many forks a la Angband, hence why it's still
> closed.)
I fully expect to continue development, so having the code forked is a concern for me. But I realize that giving people only binaries to work with might not be satisfying, and certainly doesn't allow anybody to help improve the quality of the code.

> > I would like to open source it but retain my personal copyright. I
> think
> > that the GPL version three allows for this.
>
> Not sure what you mean by this. You are always retaining copyright, but
> with GPL you are letting people use your code in any fashion as long as
> they don't publicly distribute it without (all total) sources. (GPLv3
> combines GPLv2 and LGPL 2.1 into one license, or so I'm told.)
My intent here is to ensure that I can always do what I want with my code, and the original version is recognized as something that came from my brain. :-)

> > I realize that some people
> > might use the code in a way that might be irritating to me, but there
> is
> > probably more benefit in making it open than not.
>
> In what way? What are you afraid of happening? Both GPLv2 and v3 actually
> allow others to commercially sell your code. What do you want to happen to
> it?
GPL2 and GPL3 allow for commercial use, but you still have to distribute the source code. I would prefer that the code was marked "for hobbyist use only" because I really am not thrilled about people making money off of my hobby time, but I doubt there is much I can do about that. (Then again, a new DOS TCP/IP stack is not going to have a lot of commercial value.)


> > What licenses have people here used for their software? Have their
> been
> > any 'gotchas'? (I am very familiar with open source software, but have
> > never tried to maintain my own project.)
>
> FYI, the GPLv3 is heavily shunned by *BSD and its fans (although I don't
> know why). They stick to GCC 4.2.1 or less (and want Clang or PCC to
> succeed) due to that. But most main GNU projects themselves are GPLv3 now.
> Even FreeDOS proper has a heavy GPL bias, esp. for "BASE".
>
> Personally, I think worrying about licenses is a waste of time. But it's
> your call.
I think the license matters quite a bit. BSD style licenses bother me because the commercial users do not have to release their code. That goes against the nature of what I'm trying to do here, which is release the code for hobbyist use.

My employer is going to make me jump through hoops to release this code, which is another concern. (They want to ensure that anybody who is contributing to open source is not exposing their intellectual property. I'm quite sure my code is safe, but I will have to have it reviewed.)



Mike

---
mTCP - TCP/IP apps for vintage DOS machines!
http://www.brutman.com/mTCP

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