Questions tagged [open-source-software]
For questions about open source software, which is licensed under an open source license. Generally, the source code is made available, and it provides a set of terms to allow others to use it. You may want to consider asking your question at Open Source Stack Exchange as well.
316
questions
3
votes
1
answer
115
views
Faked GPL license
Lots of software is licensed under the GPL license. It is very well known and well understood. Like most legal documents the license is itself copyrighted, and while the license can be freely copied ...
- 32.9k
0
votes
0
answers
26
views
Short Weak Copyleft Software License [migrated]
Is there a short weak (or strong) copyleft license?
I like the GPL v3. The way that all its different sections interlock is quite poetic. However, this beauty comes at the cost of it being near ...
- 1
0
votes
2
answers
115
views
Is Zero-Clause BSD legally binding?
Unilateral promises themselves are not legally binding, and donations do not constitute a valid contract, as these lack consideration (or "causa," a related concept in civil law). It's also ...
- 1
32
votes
3
answers
10k
views
Can the Cyber Resilience Act make it illegal to retire?
Suppose Alice develops some software and releases it under an open source licence. She receives just enough money to be counted as "commercial". This may be donations from users, it may be ...
- 5,878
2
votes
2
answers
123
views
Can a software license be conditional on the actions of others?
I recently had an idea for a "threshold conditional" software license that works like this:
Any person/entity can purchase a license and gain the unconditional right to use the software any ...
- 143
1
vote
0
answers
100
views
When will the baseline patents for encoding/decoding the AAC format expire?
The MP4 container is the most ubiquitous video format in the world. It is commonly used with the H.264 video codec, of which there has been a lot written about when the patents for this codec will ...
- 41
0
votes
2
answers
91
views
Can a company that releases code as GPL, use it privately?
If a company has a Github repo under GPL license, can they, as the owners of the original code, distribute closed-source copies of it, i.e do they have a different right over the code ?
- 39
2
votes
2
answers
88
views
Firmware code written under GPLv3 was modified. What should be published? [closed]
The firmware for an embedded device (e.g., a toaster) is modified significantly. Algorithms are rewritten from scratch, the code is made compatible with different hardware, etc. The end (hardware) ...
3
votes
1
answer
56
views
Have open-source hardware licenses ever been enforced when distributing a physical product?
As I have found out, there are "open-source hardware" licenses which are written in the spirit of "open-source software" licenses and require the user to publish a modified design ...
- 1,335
2
votes
1
answer
111
views
Commerical usage of sentence-transformers/multi-qa-mpnet-base-cos-v1 [closed]
We are trying to use a HuggingFace Embedding model - multi-qa-mpnet-base-cos-v1 for an internal Large Language Model powered application. While reading the documentation it says (not verbatim):
For ...
1
vote
1
answer
149
views
What if someone published program on invalid license and then fixed it?
I saw repository on GitHub where someone had LICENSE file as below:
Copyright year name
Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
you may not use this file except in ...
- 115
1
vote
1
answer
95
views
How does GPL affect a Makefile-only modification?
As a continuation of this question, does a Makefile modification when building GPL source mean my own program becomes GPL also ? For example, if some third-party GPL'd source contains exit(), and I ...
- 11
6
votes
1
answer
781
views
Legality and license choice for reverse-engineered project
I reverse engineered (by sniffing+x32dbg) part of the protocol for a board game client in order to build an alternative client on top of it while still using the official servers. I open-sourced the ...
- 163
2
votes
0
answers
64
views
Is there a body that assists in requesting source code from companies thay are required by license to release their codeass
In short, I want to have the source code of the kernel of a specific Android phone that is produced by a one specific reputable south Korean company.
They are using Android, thus they are obligated by ...
- 121
29
votes
5
answers
6k
views
Why do some licenses have a clause stating that one can't violate the law?
Example of such a clause in the Creative MLOpen RAIL-M dated August 22, 2022 used by runwayml/stable-diffusion-v1-5:
You agree not to use the Model or Derivatives of the Model:
In any way that ...
- 5,417
-1
votes
2
answers
112
views
How to put a disclaimer about IP in an open source fangame? [closed]
I am creating a fangame. Specifically a game where you can open weapon cases from Counter-Strike: Global Offensive for free and collect or trade skins that you obtain. The entire game source is my own ...
- 1
-1
votes
1
answer
53
views
GPL: distribute compiled binary [closed]
Is it legal to modify GPL v3.0 content and distribute a binary of the remixed content without disclosing the modified source code?
- 431
4
votes
1
answer
68
views
Websites routinely fail to distribute licenses for included software packages, should I? [closed]
I'm building a website using Next.js, using tons of npm packages in the process. I'm verifying that none of these packages use GPL or other licenses that would require me to publish my own source code....
- 141
0
votes
1
answer
58
views
Commonsclause with LGPL - is it legally bounding/strong to defend
Found this license:
“Commons Clause” License Condition v1.0
The Software is provided to you by the Licensor under the License, as defined below, subject to the following condition.
Without limiting ...
- 117
-1
votes
2
answers
91
views
Does the software we use to write code affect the licenses we must use?
I am a junior software developer and found the licensing confusing, partly because senior devs around me have no idea either.
Below I explore scenarios where a software developer uses other software. ...
- 39
0
votes
0
answers
177
views
Can an AI model licensed under the BigScience RAIL License v1.0 be used in a program that is useful for any domain?
Example: the AI model BLOOM is licensed under the BigScience RAIL License v1.0. The BigScience RAIL License v1.0 forbids that some types of usages:
You agree not to use the Model or Derivatives of ...
- 5,417
4
votes
0
answers
95
views
What is the definition of "substantial portions of Software" that is used in MIT License?
Text of MIT License is as follows:
Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining
a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the
"Software"), to deal ...
- 141
1
vote
1
answer
57
views
MIT license for software implementation of published algorithm with a patent in pending status
I am a researcher working at a public research institute. A research group from another country has published an algorithm in a peer-reviewed journal and provided a server implementation of it on ...
- 13
1
vote
1
answer
110
views
Odoo Community Software as a Service [closed]
Excuse my ignorance in law and licensing, I have an inquiry regarding Odoo Community Edition that's licensed under LGPLv3, I am planning to develop some addons for it to be suitable for a specific ...
- 11
1
vote
1
answer
33
views
What are the provisions for mentioning the trademark or trade name of source code orobjects licensed in open source software for proprietary software?
I'm making software that will be proprietary software, which contains some source code or objects from several different open source licenses such as BSD 3-clause, MIT, MPL, Apache, and GPL 3.0, can I ...
0
votes
1
answer
52
views
Is the non-applicability of copyright to software interfaces considered settled law?
In computer software, it's common for a system to expose an Application Programming Interface (API) for other software to interact with it. For example, a smart lightbulb might expose a SetBrightness(...
- 101
2
votes
1
answer
56
views
Where to include CC BY 3.0, CC BY 4.0, SIL OFL 1.1 attribution for a mobile app?
I want to cite the following
One SoundBible Sound found here: Attribution 3.0
FontAwesome5 (free license info) (used via react-native-vector-icons): react-native-vector-icons uses the TTF files so I'...
- 23
5
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Are shell scripts considered binaries for licensing purposes?
There are a number of licenses that contain the term "binary distribution". For example, https://github.com/boostorg/beast/blob/develop/LICENSE_1_0.txt:
A simple permissive license only ...
- 53
1
vote
0
answers
40
views
What are the exactly steps need to do to meet a project requirements of aprache2 licnese?
When we find a web app on GitHub with apache2 license, we would like to host it for the public to visit.
From https://tldrlegal.com/license/apache-license-2.0-(apache-2.0)
Must part.
Include ...
- 507
0
votes
1
answer
155
views
Theft as Distribution of Software
I recently posed a hypothetical to a lawyer who deals with software licensing (His role is to protect a company from accidentally misusing FOSS software) and got a startling response. My hypothetical ...
- 125
2
votes
0
answers
53
views
How to find a US lawyer for consultation in the open-source + banking + blockchain space?
Considering writing open-source software in the banking/cryptocurrency space (in the USA). Want to do it properly, and have a few questions for how to navigate the space.
What's the type of lawyer I ...
- 21
1
vote
0
answers
36
views
FOSS License compatibility
I have been struggling to understand license compatibility and how it manifests.
Two examples:
I have a program to which i wrote the codebase. This codebase then dynamically links to two different ...
- 462
0
votes
0
answers
14
views
Grant access to previous public research results including IPR for the purpose of future commercial exploitation
We are building a project of technology transfer.
In the project, one partner is a university XXX; the main contact person who will work with us is a professor. Previously, the professor and his team ...
- 103
0
votes
0
answers
16
views
Does BSD 3-clause extend to educational material
Problem
I am looking to teach a web development course and to help teach JavaScript I wanted to use a package licensed under BSD 3-clause. I am unsure if using the library to teach with violates the ...
- 101
1
vote
2
answers
76
views
Can I include EULA-licensed IP core in GPL codebase?
I work on little hardware project in Verilog. It would be published on GitLab and would be available for Open Source community. It is licensed as GPL 3.
I want to include external IP component in my ...
2
votes
1
answer
243
views
License or not for open source code published by the manufacturer?
Do I need license for the Arduino code that a company has posted in their websites when I buy their sensors to use them to my Arduino? For instance, I buy a CO2 sensor and I use the company's code in ...
- 123
31
votes
5
answers
9k
views
Can you host a version of Wikipedia on your own domain and charge for it?
I am reading through these notes, trying to piece together a picture of what the rules/laws are regarding Wikipedia content:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Mirrors_and_forks
https://en....
- 769
0
votes
1
answer
160
views
Can the GPL3 and MIT license be applied to closed-source software?
I recently found software containing only binaries (no access to source code) being distributed and dual-licensed under the GPL3 (https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.en.html) and MIT (https://...
9
votes
2
answers
4k
views
Is it legal for me to provide a download of an unchanged fork of an application that is on GitHub?
I plan to write some tech blogs, where one of them showcases an application from GitHub without a license. Now I just forked it as a backup because I don't want my viewers can't find it someday if the ...
- 507
5
votes
1
answer
199
views
In the US, under what circumstances can I re-write code I previously wrote but do not own?
I write code for company X in the USA using popular technology Y. In the course of my job I end up developing a number of useful libraries/widgets/utilities for use within the Y ecosystem that have ...
- 151
3
votes
0
answers
35
views
Licensing of template code
GitHub has template repositories, that make it easy to offer starter code for new projects. I want to allow anyone to generate their projects from my template and then change the license to whatever ...
- 131
1
vote
1
answer
139
views
MongoDB Wire protocol: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License
MongoDB Wire Protocol Specification is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License. So as per the license, we may not use or adapt this material ...
- 113
1
vote
1
answer
43
views
Can gratis FOSS projects have trademarks?
I maintain a FOSS library as a hobby project. Does this count as using its name in commerce, or do I have to sell a copy to someone?
- 13.7k
2
votes
1
answer
198
views
Using different source code for binary releases
If a company released source code for software and released a corresponding binary release that uses different code, are they obligated to give acknowledgement that they used different source code?
...
- 169
0
votes
2
answers
490
views
Can software with an GPL3-0 license be sold as a product after it has been modified?
I have a project which uses yolov5. I modified the yolov5 and implemented it into my own project (I don't just use the modified version of yolov5 as project. It is just a part of my project.). I read ...
- 1
12
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Am I at risk by storing or using software that violates copyright?
Imagine the following scenario:
A software company copies code from some open source project and includes it in their own software without giving credit to the original authors, violating the open ...
- 221
0
votes
0
answers
50
views
What license would be correct for an online version of a proprietary board Game?
For a student project we created on online version of "The Game" and now we have to decide which open source license (MIT License, GPL, Apache License, etc.) would be the most suitable for ...
- 101
1
vote
0
answers
57
views
AGPL-3.0 license
If make a service for a open source software with this license that interact but isn't part of the software itself, only connected to it,
i would need to provide a open source distribution of the ...
- 53
5
votes
1
answer
1k
views
What is a binary form in software BSD license (and other licenses that didn't define it)?
BSD license says (emphasis mine):
Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are met...
It sounds "...
- 203
2
votes
1
answer
213
views
Is each version of a software considered a "derivative work"?
Originally asked in Software Engineering but a user raised it is more a legal question than an engineering one.
Let's suppose there is a software at version a1 in code repository A on an online code ...
- 203