[ CC'ed to the Open Source board, because after all, they *do* manage the Open Source trademark. -russ ] bruce@perens.com writes: > I think you should consider that not all software needs to be Open Source. > Make some proprietary software to provide your livelyhood. Open up what you > can. I am afraid that the more restrictive licenses may actually do more > damage to our community than straight proprietary software, because half-free > software acts to discourage people from making an entirely free solution, and > leads the free software community down the slippery slope of accepting > progressively more restrictive licenses. Well, that's why Open Source(tm) is a trademark. The more I do this stuff, and the more I think about it, the more I realize that Open Source licenses are not antithetical to business interests -- they are tangential to business interests. A common thread among the multiple Open Source licenses is a lack of interest in protecting revenue streams, and a concentration in protecting reputation. Different Open Source licenses impose different restrictions on modifications. You might have to advertise the original author (BSD). You might have to change the name of the executables (Artistic). You might have to distribute the changes as patches (QPL). You might have to inform the original author that you are distributing modifications (APSL). You might have to run a regression test which blesses the changes (???). But a license cannot restrict the distribution of changes. The purpose of any Open Source license is to protect reputation. A business only cares about reputation if it helps sell product or services. If you have nothing proprietary to sell with that reputation, then you're trying to sell air. If you can sell your services for enough, then do it. Otherwise, I think you should consider that not all software needs to be Open Source. Perhaps proprietary software would do a better job of funding your Open Source development? -- -russ nelson <rn-sig@crynwr.com> http://crynwr.com/~nelson Crynwr supports Open Source(tm) Software| PGPok | There is good evidence 521 Pleasant Valley Rd. | +1 315 268 1925 voice | that freedom is the Potsdam, NY 13676-3213 | +1 315 268 9201 FAX | cause of world peace.