Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with gpl

Large scale use of Linux on the desktop in organizations?

thewalrus — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 14:49:38 -0800

I'm looking for a list or reference to press releases/news articles about large corporations or government departments that have switched to Linux as a desktop platform. For example this week it was reported that the French police have 5,000 PCs running Ubuntu. I'd like to compile some kind of list of large organizations that have successfully replaced Win2000/XP on the desktop. Can anyone describe a real world example they have seen first hand?

I've read about significant uptake in Germany and in Brazil, and educational-specific Portuguese language specific versions of Linux. In the English and German speaking worlds I know that Novell and SuSE are making businesses out of this, so I'll check their PR archives as well...

French reference:
http://www.linuxreaders.com/2009/04/27/french-police-switch-from-windows-to-linux/

GPLFilter

Alterscape — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 10:19:19 -0800

Software license filter: Using a GPL-licensed library with a questionably-licensed JNI binding layer. What implications does this have for Java code that links to the JNI layer? I'm writing closed-source Java code as a research assistant in a university. So far, my code links only to GPLv2 w/classpath exception software, primarily the NetBeans RCP. A collaborator of mine has contributed a patch that requires the GLPK GNU library, which is licensed under GPLv3 (no classpath exception). The patch uses the GLPK Java Interface, which does not distribute source and does not list a license on the page or in the downloaded package.

The question: If I use the GLPK Java Interface, must I relicense my code under GPLv3 to be consistent with the GLPK's license?

(The technicalities of if I can do so are between the university lawyers and I, I suspect, and while I would love to open source this project, I'm not sure I have the ability to do so, and may need to investigate other closed-source solutions).

Free software for running auctions?

sebastienbailard — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 01:53:42 -0800

Is there any good free software for running many-to-many auctions on a linux server, similar to ebay? I've spent an evening looking around on google, checked sourceforge, etc. phpauction looked promising, until I found a note slamming it, and realized they may just be very good at search engine optimization and sock-puppetry.

My application would be for hobbyist RepRap 3D printer builders swapping and selling parts, machines, and printed works, so I'd like something oriented towards casual one-off use.

Is this webhost vilation GPL?

GilloD — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 13:41:15 -0800

Is our webhost violating the GPL? Wordpress, fees and more inside.
The company I work for has a website from which we do a fair amount of e-commerce business. We use a webhost who not only hosts the site, but handles the e-commerce end of things- It passes the orders along to OrderMotion, a web-based inventory and sales program. For the most part they're okay. They can be slow and pricey, but as long as we plan out, they're fine. Recently, we decided to add a blog to the site. Our web host quoted us a 25$ installation fee, which is fine, and then a 25$/mth fee for, uh. They don't seem to know. They'd just like to charge us 25 bucks a month for having a blog.

Now, I'm okay with the 25 dollar installation fee. WordPress is pretty easy to install and while our site architecture isn't complicated, I'd rather pay a few bucks and have someone intimately familiar with the site handle the dirty work. But the 25 dollars a month is absurd, especially for free software.

My Q is this: Does this 25 bucks a month violate the GPL WordPress is distributed under? I suppose they could claim it's a "maintenance" fee and not a fee for the platform, but I'm just looking to make an argument that might have them reconsider that monthly fee.

And, yes, I'm ready to DIY this if I have to, but getting them to allow me to add a MySQL DB is going to be like pulling hair. They're generally very, very, very slow with things.

Thanks for the heads up!

Open source skulduggery

jbrjake — Wed, 21 May 2008 07:23:03 -0800

How should an open source project deal with someone misappropriating its code for profit? I help administer HandBrake, a small video conversion project that's somewhat popular in the Mac world.

We've just been informed that a company called Kandalu has appropriated our code, modified it to add licensing and changed some icons, and is now selling it for $25 a pop as KVideoPodPro.

They do not make source code available, and they claim on their website they wrote it themselves. However, even a cursory comparison of screenshots reveals the truth. Running their executable through the strings command even reveals an instance of "HandBrake 0.9.1" in the binary as well the fact that when they were slapping on the registration code they were working in this filepath:

/Developer/Projects/Others/HandBrake/macosx/Registration/Fondamentals/SESenuti.m

Considering that HandBrake has no "Registration" directory, since it's free, that's a pretty clear-cut sign they've modified the code.

Now, HandBrake is GPL. We give it away free, but there's no reason someone can't sell it (not that I'd suggest it with libdvdcss in there...). And there's no reason they can't modify it.

But they aren't publishing the modifications, and they aren't crediting the original authors, and they sure aren't following the GPL.

Added fun: HandBrake uses a lot of other open source libraries like ffmpeg and x264. It modifies these libraries with patches, that are publicly available on our website. This "KVideoPodPro" is using the same patches and building the same ibraries, but isn't saying it's using them, that's it modifying them, or how it's modifying them. So this does extend out to the greater FOSS world.

So what do we do? HandBrake is totally volunteer. We have no money at all to use in fighting this.

Obviously the first step is getting in touch with these people and asking them to publish their source code changes. But what's the right thing to say, and the right way to say it? And what do we do when they blow it off?

Best of public domain games

JaySunSee — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 13:02:13 -0800

I'm looking for recommendations on gpl'd or public domain card games and role playing games. Which ones are easiest to learn and the most fun?

Maybe FUD: "All the other sites have viruses."

Netzapper — Wed, 15 Aug 2007 17:55:59 -0800

I am creating and publishing-by-download an episodic, story-driven 3D computer game. I want to make the code GPL, and I'd prefer to release the art under Creative Commons. I also want to make mad cash. How can I swing this? With software piracy a way of life, thwarted only occasionally by the most invasive of anti-piracy methods (calling home, hardward dongles), it seems silly of me to pretend every player of my game will have paid me the $5 for an episode. So, why not go the next step, and let people who love the game mod the game? Thus, the GPL and a CC license.

However, I'd also like to actually make some money from the venture. It's sucking up a lot of my time. I cannot imagine that a "please donate if you love AOE!" button would really net me much. I understand that these licenses apply only to people to whom I license it. However, if I sell somebody a license for $5 under the GPL/cc, and he makes a copy for Suzy, that's totally legit.

So, how do I convince people to pay me for what their neighbor can copy for them?

Who owns open source code?

crypticgeek — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 08:43:22 -0800

Legalfilter: Who really owns an open source project? A friend mentioned to me that Apple had bought the CUPS source code. Which is rather interesting to me because it brings up the question of ownership. Clearly to sell the source code to Apple, some person or group of persons must own the source code and agree to the terms of the sale. So my question is, who owned all the code?

Obviously I assume many people other than the original author have submitted patches to the code. Do they relinquish their ownership of the code when they submit a patch? I know the sqlite project makes patch submitters agree to release their patches into the public domain. Do other projects make similar requests to their submitters to release their rights? If it's not done explicitly, can it be an assumed implicit release of rights? You'll have to forgive my ignorance here. I've never contributed to a project before so I'm not quite sure of the "standard practices", if this is one. I intend to develop my own open source project someday, so this would be good to know.

Xchat is another example that comes to mind here. I recently learned that the lead developer has for some time now charged for the windows binary while claiming it was still GPL'd with source available (except for the code that controls the 30 day expiration of the software). Did patch submitters give up their rights to their code (thereby allowing him to release and relicense in this manner), or is he flagrantly violating the law and the license of code he doesn't entirely own? He has said he has a standing offer to remove or rewrite any patches someone might have made if they ask him to, so that makes me believe he does not infact own all the code. If so, could then someone who wrote a patch sue him since he's making profit off their work?

Use of LGPL Image as Logo

GregX3 — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 12:38:45 -0800

Can I use this image (LGPL'd) as a logo for my website? I'd like to modify it to change the color but otherwise use it unchanged. I'm unsure about the licensing issues though.

Do I have to provide my CMS modifications under the GPL?

Dag Maggot — Tue, 27 Jun 2006 20:28:08 -0800

Say I was using a Web Content Management System that was covered under the GPL. If I made lots of modifications to the CMS, but only used it for my own site - do I need to provide my modified CMS to the public to download? I'm debating this with a friend - I thought it was only if you are planning to redistribute the software to others, but now I'm wondering - and certainly don't want to a afoul of the GPL.

Wahhhh, don't let it die!! :'(

twiggy — Thu, 29 Dec 2005 08:48:42 -0800

How do I convince someone to fully "hand over" (to the public, not to me specificallY) a now dead, open source but not totally "open licensed" project. Furthermore, how do I find people who might want to work on its revival? At my old job, we developed a programming language in-house. I grew to love it and I can't stand looking at PHP and the like. It's tag based, it's got some slick features, and its code can look very pretty (to web folk, anyway). The web development firm has given up on the language and bacome mostly a PHP shop at this point.

My old boss is kind of a possessive, hardnosed businessman type, so even though the project is pretty much dead at this point, I don't feel he'll just open the doors and say "ok, someone else can have this and manage it" for fear that some day it will wake up and be a cash cow or something and no longer be just his. I would probably have this same irrational paranoia, so I can't really fault him for this.

He wrote up his own legal terminology for a custom license "based on" the GPL, and included it in the code. It can be seen here.

1) How do I convince him to "hand it over", so to speak, to the public? Do I even need to do this to have someone else start developing it and releasing new versions?

2) What's a good place to find programmers who might be interested in continuing the development of a web scripting language? It seems difficult in this day and age since PHP exists already, and Ruby on Rails is The New Black (tm).

I really don't want to see this language die. It's coldfusion-esque in its syntax (a tag based scripting language), and has a lot of great features. The documentation on the site doesn't really do it justice, but it can be seen here... (this would have been a somewhat-self link 2 years ago, but shouldn't be one now, technically)

I have a specific idea of the one thing I'd like a programmer to add, but no motivation to add it myself because my C coding skills have fallen by the wayside since I've been more of a web developer for the last several years.

I'd also love to see this language take off, as it's free, easy as hell to learn (and easy for HTML-using graphic designers to design around - they can even understand the code!) and just a general pleasure to code in. If anyone is interested in code samples beyond what's documented on the site (i.e. something actually functional/useful), let me know and I can either post them here or email them.

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

What is the legal status of software developed with OSS tools?

mkultra — Thu, 15 Dec 2005 11:36:10 -0800

What is the legal status of software developed with OSS tools? An IP lawyer just tried to convince me that software created with open source tools must, by the nature of the license (assume GPL) be open source as well. I tried explaining that I think he's confusing making changes to the software with making something with the software. Now, I know in my guy that his stance is absurd, and brought up things like gcc, mySQL, and some of OS X's underpinnings that would make a significant chunk of commercially-developed software technically open-source.

Of course, being a lawyer, he doesn't accept my "because I say so" response. Is this delineation spelled out anywhere? Or is he correct that the GPL is legally flawed in this way and that the community has just tacitly decided to ignore this issue?

Open Source GPL Groupware Options

ao4047 — Fri, 02 Dec 2005 00:14:53 -0800

What open source groupware package to use? I've been surverying the numerous GPL PM and intranet packages out there and figure someone has probably done this analysis already. I've looked at OpengroupWare.org, Dotproject, PHProjekt, Tutos, PHPCollab, and others.

Anybody have favorites or peeves? I'm looking for a system to manage my small business as I hire an assistant and work with contractors. Bonus points for Gannt output.

How much poison does the GPL contain?

SpecialK — Thu, 10 Nov 2005 15:55:50 -0800

The GPL: If I were to include a piece of GPL'd code in a commercial application that I'm selling a license to, what do I need to do to be in compliance with the GPL?

Are there any free or open source shared calendar solutions?

reverendX — Sun, 09 Jan 2005 21:37:01 -0800

Free/Open source shared calendar solutions? [mi] I'm looking for a free/open source shared calendar solution. Does anyone have any favorites?

Licensing Code

deaddodo — Thu, 07 Oct 2004 23:46:42 -0800

Which license should I choose? [more inside] I'm going to release a few bits of code over the weekend, which I have never done before. I want them to be able to be used non-commercially, and if anyone makes revisions they either have to publish them themselves, or give them to me to incorporate. Basically the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License (I think). Can this be use for code? Are there any better choices?