Software under the gpl

This is especially a concern for libraries which are building blocks for larger software. Furthermore, specifically with gpl versions, the fsf recommends that programs say version 3 of the gpl or any later version, and in that case you can effectively even relicense other peoples code under a new version. Marco fioretti answers a techrepublic members questions about charging fees for software thats made available under the gnu gpl. Distribution and derivative works under the gnu general public license theresa gue abstract imagine that microsoft discovers that its profitable program, microsoft word, contains lines of code borrowed from a free and open source software program.

Lawsuit threatens to break new ground on the gpl and. There are lots of projects released under more than one license. Relationships between the gpl licences and other software are carefully explained in the gpl faq. Some of the mostinstalled open source software is gpllicensed, such as linux, wordpress, and wikipedias underlying software, mediawiki. How to use gnu licenses for your own software gnu project free. Most gpl version 2 software is actually licensed as gpl version 2 or any later version, or. Gnu general public license version 2 open source initiative. Top 10 best open source softwares that rocks world wide. Gnu general public license gpl, is a good example of it which allows free distribution under the same license for its free usage. The gnu general public license is a free, copyleft license for software and other kinds of works. I want to modify and merge some software that is available under the two clause bsd license into a project that is available under the gnu gpl version 2. Gnu general public license, version 3 spdx short identifier.

All programs, whether they are released under the gpl or lgpl, should include the text. Anki the desktop version is under gnu agpl, the android version is under gplv3. When versata software sued ameriprise financial services for breaching its software license, it unwittingly unearthed a gpl violation of its own and touched off another lawsuit that could prove to be a leading case on free and open source software licensing. The purpose of this license is to ensure that a work can be freely distributed and modified by anybody, and that no proprietary works can be derived from the original work. Top 10 gnu gpl license questions answered whitesource. We use only licenses that are compatible with the gnu gpl for gnu software. Frequently asked questions about the gnu licenses gnu project. This license was originally written by richard stallman from the free software foundati. A practical guide to gpl compliance software freedom law. If i use gpl software in my application, but dont modify or distribute it, do i have to release my application under the gpl. The choice of licence comes down to personal preference, and both approaches can have good or bad. We have a javascript codebase that we want to opensource in an incremental fashion. Media in category free software under the gpl the following 17 files are in this category, out of 17 total.

Ampache web based audiovideo streaming application. Under the gnu gpl, you would not need to distribute your source code if you made modifications to a project released under the gpl, but provided it as a service. Gpl general public license is a free license software that is popularly used across the world. Wikipedias content is mostly under the creative commons bysa license, which has similar sharealike features to the gpl. This is a list of free and opensource software packages, computer software licensed under free software licenses and opensource licenses. Further imagine that as a result of this oversight, all users of. To me it smacks of open source evangelists trying to trick the world into going open source instead of persuading the world of its. The gpl is very restrictive in the sense it forces any derivative work to be released opensource under the same terms. The affero general public license affero gpl and informally affero license is a free software license. This is a brief explanation of how to place a program under the gnu general public license, gnu lesser general public license, or gnu affero general public license. Pages in category software using the gpl license the following 150 pages are in this category, out of 150 total. Can i use gpl software in a commercial application software. For more information about the philosophical background for opensource. If i use a piece of software that has been obtained under the gnu gpl, am i allowed to modify the.

You may obtain the complete corresponding source code from us for a period of three years after our last shipment of this product, which will be no earlier than 20110801, by sending a money order or. The following 152 pages are in this category, out of 152. If your project contains a component that contains a component that contains a component that is under the gpl phew. Permission is granted to copy, distribute andor modify this document under the terms of the gnu free documentation license, version 1. Can gpl licenced software be used in corporate environments. The gpl is considered the standard open source software licence, and many non software works are published under the gpl as well. A copy of that license is included in this document on page x. Marco fioretti answers a techrepublic members questions about charging fees for software thats made available under the gnu gpl license version 2 or 3. By contrast, the gnu general public license is intended to guarantee your freedom to share and change free software to make sure the software is free for all its.

You may copy, distribute and modify the software as long as you track changesdates of in source files and keep modifications under gpl. The question of usage is a little more complicated. That is, we want to release the full code to some of our core. You are under the reciprocity obligation, which means you are. Software that fits the free software definition may be more appropriately called free software. By contrast, the gnu general public license is intended to guarantee your freedom to share and change all versions of a. For further information, see our list of frequently asked questions about our licenses. One example is mozillas trilicense, which states that the software is released under the mpl, but the user can also choose gpl or lgpl instead of mpl i think this is because the mpl license is incompatible with the gpl license however, i came across projects released under both the gpl license and the mit. The license allows developers and companies to use and integrate a software component released under the lgpl into their own even proprietary software without being required by the terms of a strong copyleft license to release the source code of their own. List of free and opensource software packages wikipedia.

Frequently answered questions open source initiative. The gpl was created by richard stallman in order to protect gnu software from being made proprietary. Wikimedia commons has media related to free software under the gpl. Apache 2 software can therefore be included in gplv3 projects, because the gplv3 license accepts our software.

Nothing forbids you to write software that runs under linux regardless of the licence of your software. To make it free software, you need to release it under a free software license. Is this allowed without getting permission from the owner of the to the bsded code. Frequently asked questions about the gnu licenses gnu. The gpl allows you to modify, copy, and distribute software licensed under it, provided you also license the derived work under the gpl, and make available the source code. The software freedom law center provides practical advice for developers about including permissively licensed source. If you have licensed software youve written under gpl version 2, and you are the original licensor of that software, you may wish to relicense your software. Richard stallman created the gpl to protect the gnu software from being. Qgis is a user friendly open source geographic information system gis licensed under the gnu general public license. The software included in this product contains ed software that is licensed under the gpl. Distribution of programs released under the gnu licenses. It allows users to study, run, share, and modify the software. The gnu general public license, often shortened to gnu gpl or simply gpl, lists terms and conditions for copying, modifying and distributing free software.

Gplv2 is compatible with gplv3 if the program allows you to choose any later version of the gpl, which is the case for most software released under this license. The second version agplv2 was published in november 2007, as a transitional license to allow an. The licenses for most software and other practical works are designed to take away your freedom to share and change the works. As curiousdannii said you can always release your own code under another license, even if its incompatible with a license you used earlier. Add a copying file with a copy of the gnu gpl or gnu agpl. If software is licenced under a gpl license, can it be used without restriction in a corporatecommercial environment. For gpl programs running on your server, you are the user, for agpl, the real users of the app are. Stet was the first software system known to be released under the gnu agpl, on november 21, 2007, and is the only known program to be used mainly for the production of its own license flask developer armin ronacher noted in 20 that the gnu agpl is a terrible success, especially among the startup community as a vehicle for dual commercial licensing, and. The licenses for most software are designed to take away your freedom to share and change it. You can distribute your application using a gpl library commercially, but you must also provide the source code.

This diagram is not comprehensive see our licenses page for a more complete list of licenses compatible with gplv2 and gplv3, but plainly illustrates that gplv3 is compatible with. This is an incomplete list of software that are licensed under the gnu affero general public license, in alphabetical order akvo platform data platform for sustainable development goals and international development tracking. The software that i am refering to is qgis which provides this description. What agpl does on top of gpl is the redefinition of user. The gnu general public license gnu gpl or gpl is a series of widely used free software licenses that guarantee end users the freedom to run, study, share, and modify the software.

The licenses were originally written by richard stallman, former head of the free software foundation fsf, for the gnu project, and grant the recipients of a computer program the rights of the free software. This post takes a look at the legal issues raised by both cases and what they mean for foss producers and users. We normally use the gnu general public license gnu gpl, specifying version 3 or any later version, but occasionally we use other free software licenses. The gnu affero general public license agpl is not that different from the gnu general public license, but with considerations for software asaservice. The free software foundation considers the apache license, version 2. What is gnu general public license gnu gpl or simply gpl. The gnu lesser general public license lgpl is a free software license published by the free software foundation fsf. For the gnu free documentation license, we have a separate page.