ElkArte Community

Title: Licenses
Post by: Flavio93Zena on September 01, 2015, 05:32:18 am
@Antechinus Following this - http://www.elkarte.net/community/index.php?topic=2877.0

I'd use the DBAD instead :P http://www.dbad-license.org/
Title: Re: Licenses
Post by: Antechinus on September 01, 2015, 05:16:35 pm
Yeah that's a good one too, but frankly I don't care if someone else wants to be a dick. That's their problem. No skin off my nose.

And let's face it, if they do decide to be a dick I'm hardly likely to take the case to court, and try to convince a judge that the defendant's actions meet a legal definition of "being a dick". That way lies madness. So, in reality, if you're never going to make any attempt to enforce the license, why bother including those terms?

WTFPL is simple. It's the legal equivalent of putting your work in the public domain, and applies even in jurisdictions that don't allow living people to put their work into the public domain directly. It's also approved by the OSI and FSF, unlike some of the other "funny" licenses.

Take https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beerware for example. It's basically a good license, but no good if you want people to be able to use your work, while still complying with OSI and FSF requirements.

ETA: When putting something out under the WTFPL, I usually just link to the license and put an explanatory text below the link:

"This mod is licensed under the WTFPL (http://www.wtfpl.net/), which is a legally recognised and completely valid license.

If the possibility of seeing profanity means you would prefer to not read the actual license terms, rest assured that you can do whatever you like with this mod's code.

Enjoy."

That way any fragile little bunnies should still be safe from harm. :D

Which reminds me, I should add a license to my memberlist mod.

/me goes to do that...
Title: Re: Licenses
Post by: Spuds on September 01, 2015, 05:58:20 pm
I've used the WTFPL on a couple of addons as well, more as a kind of joke for how simple or silly the mod is.  You can try to release into the public domain, but that's actually not recognized in all counties, but a good option along those lines is http://unlicense.org/ 

On a more or less serious note, the WTFPL main issue is that it does not include a no-warranty disclaimer as part of its text but you should use one.  Just because you don't give a WTF does not mean that some Rotten Bunny Bush will not. 

MIT is a great OS license to use, set it and forget it, recognized and supported.

Of course IANAL, but the world seems run by them.
Title: Re: Licenses
Post by: Antechinus on September 01, 2015, 06:11:48 pm
Yeah but since unlicense specifically states that it is release into public domain, AFAICT that means it's not applicable in some jurisdictions. Obviously IANAL either, but it just looks like that to me.

I suppose a warranty clause is a good point. That's easy enough to cover, since WTFPL gives an example which is compatible with the license.

Quote/* This program is free software. It comes without any warranty, to
     the extent permitted by applicable law. You can redistribute it
    
and/or modify it under the terms of the Do What The ZOMG_THERE'S_A_NAUGHTY_WORD_HERE You Want
     To Public License, Version 2, as published by Sam Hocevar. See
    
http://www.wtfpl.net/ for more details. */
Title: Re: Licenses
Post by: Antechinus on September 01, 2015, 06:18:07 pm
Hmm. Just looking around a bit, and the ISC seems like the best one. Far less gobbledegook in it.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISC_license

QuoteCopyright (c) Year(s), Company or Person's Name

Permission to use, copy, modify, and/or distribute this software for any purpose with or without fee is hereby granted, provided that the above copyright notice and this permission notice appear in all copies.

THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND THE AUTHOR DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES WITH REGARD TO THIS SOFTWARE INCLUDING ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHOR BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER RESULTING FROM LOSS OF USE, DATA OR PROFITS, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE OR OTHER TORTIOUS ACTION, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OR PERFORMANCE OF THIS SOFTWARE.
Title: Re: Licenses
Post by: Joshua Dickerson on September 01, 2015, 06:39:46 pm
What jurisdictions say you can't release something to public domain? That's retarded.
Title: Re: Licenses
Post by: Antechinus on September 01, 2015, 06:42:29 pm
Dunno. It's just listed as a problem with "some jurisdictions". I haven't looked up which ones they are.
Title: Re: Licenses
Post by: Antechinus on September 01, 2015, 06:45:27 pm
I think the problem is that the standard clause for automatic release into the public domain just says something like "if they've been dead for 70 years this is up for grabs", and probably some places just haven't bothered adding any riders about deliberate release by living people.

So, rather than being an attempt to stop people releasing their own stuff, it's more of an oversight that borks the process.
Title: Re: Licenses
Post by: Spuds on September 01, 2015, 07:00:29 pm
Yup ... only this day and age can it be so difficult to give something away :P  That ISC license looks really nice, good find ! 
Title: Re: Licenses
Post by: Antechinus on September 01, 2015, 07:02:20 pm
I wish they wouldn't use CAPSLOCK for the warranty clause. It'd be easier to read in normal text. :P
Title: Re: Licenses
Post by: Flavio93Zena on September 02, 2015, 01:30:55 am
Lol, this turned out to be an interesting discussion ;D The ISC is pretty good though, from what I can see.

Besides mine was just to remember people not to be D. If they want to act as such anyways, then whatever, but just put a little fear on them :P
Title: Re: Licenses
Post by: Antechinus on September 10, 2015, 10:34:56 pm
Hey I was just looking around Eric Meyers' site and found something that would make a great addition to all licenses.

On this page, down the bottom: http://meyerweb.com/eric/tools/color-blend/#CCCCFF:66CC00:10:hex

QuoteThis tool is provided without warranty, guarantee, or much in the way of explanation. Note that use of this tool may or may not crash your browser, lock up your machine, erase your hard drive, or e-mail those naughty pictures you hid in the Utilities folder to your mother. Don't blame me if anything bad happens to you, because it's actually the aliens' fault. The code expressed herein is solely that of the author, and he's none too swift with the JavaScript, if you know what we mean, so it's likely to cause giggle fits in anyone who knows what they're doing. Not a flying toy. Thank you for playing. Insert coin to continue.
:D
Title: Re: Licenses
Post by: Flavio93Zena on September 11, 2015, 07:20:53 am
Ahahahahah you are the only one who can find those things on the interwebz ;D