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  From: Alan Kennington <akenning@topology.org>
  To  : David Newall <davidn@rebel.net.au>
  Date: Mon, 7 May 2001 13:37:18 +0930

Re: request for advice on non-free open license

On Mon, May 07, 2001 at 12:25:56PM +0930, David Newall wrote:
> > Can I impose commerical licence conditions on 2 source 
> > files which are to be added to a linux kernel to 
> > extend its functionality?
> 
> What Lucent do, for their modems, is provide a modified version of the
> open source serial.c, so that it can act as an interface between the
> kernel and their closed V.90 modem driver.  The modified serial.c is
> entirely GPL and the ltmodem.o is proprietary and binary only.  The other
> thing that they do, which is quite clever, is only distribute source
> for serial.c, not binary.  The end-user must compile serial.c and link
> it with ltmodem.o (ie, type "install").  This mechanism ensres Lucent
> are not violating GPL.

David,

That's very useful, thanks.
That seems like the way to go.
I'm intending to make my software GPL or AL as soon as it has earned
enough money to get a fair return on the substantial investment.

In fact, maybe I could have a GPL patch or something, as a stub to
a freeer-than-GPL open source licence.

In this way, I as author will also have some freedom - the freedom
to get some benefit from my creativity and very hard work, and
then choose the time at which I give it away.
That's real freedom.

As Tom Christiansen once said in a slashdot stream, 10 Dec 1999:

=================================================================
Some people prefer to install poison-pills in their licences. Usually, this
poison pill is about using the software to make money with. Sleepycat Software
has that, the GPL has that, and so do lots of others. I suppose some selfish
people have good reasons for this, but let's not be pretending that software
with a poison-pill in it is somehow "free", or that it does the most good. It
doesn't. A selfish poison pill tries to make sure that the original authors'
socio-economic-political dogma gets spread through the world at the cost of
helping fewer people. "Use" licences like this hamper code reuse and hurt
programmers. A gift, on the other hand, comes without a price tag on it.

Every author has to make up their own mind here. I personally prefer software
freely given away--without restrictions, without legislated morality, without
poison pills, without any agenda beyond trying to help to make the world a
better place. The AL seems to do a good job at that.

Try, please, to remember what the greatest gift of all is. If you know what it
is and why, then you'll understand. If you do not, then I'm not sure I can
convince you. But the answer is charity.
=================================================================

That's why I prefer Artistic Licence.
Recently I was asked if my free software could be incorporated into
a multi-billion dollar Australian project. The project people
couldn't make sense of software and thought instinctively that
they must pay me something to sign over a licence to them etc. etc.
to avoid royalties.
In this world, it is still very difficult to find people who can
enter into technology deals without patents, exclusive
licences etc. etc.

Something like Star Office shows the value of starting commercial or
"free for non-commercial use" while developing the software, and then
later giving it away.

It could be argued that the GPL makes it difficult to get funds to do
the development required to _create_ the gift to give away.

With patents, you get 17 years (in the USA) or so to give the idea
away for free. Maybe there could be a "delayed GPL" which requires you
to give away your software under the full GPL after 3 years.
Just a thought.

Cheers,
Alan Kennington.
 
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