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List:       kde-devel
Subject:    Re: Noatun: Licensing, and a new one
From:       Charles Samuels <charles () kde ! org>
Date:       2001-01-02 9:43:09
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On Tuesday 02 January 2001 01:29 am, Guillaume Laurent wrote:
> On Tuesday 02 January 2001 10:12, Charles Samuels wrote:
> > KDE won't get PR points from using a _very_ unrestrictive and
> > free-as-in-speech license?
>
> KDE won't get PR point from inventing yet-another Free Software license.
> I'm sorry but this is an extremely bad idea.
KDE isn't inventing ayet-another Free software License: I am.

>
> > Because, it being my own program, and since I dislike both the GPL and
> > LGPL, I decide that I should use the KDE License.
>
> Are you really sure satisfying your own personal taste is worth the major
> hassle you're going to cause ?
The largest hassle so far is replying to all these negative emails. :)

>
> > We don't necessarily, Noatun and I need a new license, because I find all
> > the others inadequate.  There's nothing wrong with creating a new
> > license.
>
> Yes there is. QPL, MPL, GPL, LGPL, BSD, Artistic, X11... That's already way
> too many.
Licenses arn't something tangible.  They do not require storage space, nor 
people to move it around in fires.  I'm not competing with others when I 
create a new license, I don't reduce the efficiency of KDE, or make the 
computer slower.  The most I'm doing is making sure that my own[*] code is 
alloted with certain freedoms, and certain restrictions, of which I prefer.

* Yes, there's other programmers, that's why I call this a "suggestion" for a 
new license.  Being that if not all the developers agree, then I'm stuck with 
artistic.

>
> > But if it makes you feel better, compare it to the BSD license, it's
> > quite similar.
>
> Then can't you use it instead ?
No, because I don't like it :)  Being that I wrote the bulk of the program, I 
have the right to suggest a change in license, as does everyone else.  If 
everyone agrees, it happens.

Although, a lot of people have suggested that calling it the KDE license is a 
Bad Idea, and I'm beginning to agree, just for the hassle, possibly for the 
PR.  Maybe I should have just called it the Noatun License and gotten that 
over with.  It's not too late.

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