Copyright & licenses (was RE: [Python-Dev] Python Enhancement Proposals (PEPs))
Tim Peters
tim_one@email.msn.com
Fri, 14 Jul 2000 04:06:42 -0400
[Greg Stein]
> Why must we assert copyrights on these things? Come on, people. Aren't
> we seeing Python 2.0 release problems because of copyrights?
[Fred L. Drake, Jr.]
> No. *Licensing* is distinct from copyright, and that's where we see
> problems.
The question of who is to be the next copyright holder will become a bone of
contention too before this is over, don't you think? What to do with all
the current copyright notices is already a point of negotiation (e.g.,
should CWI really have a notice in files that didn't even exist yet under
their tenure? etc. Note that when I added pyport.h to the project, I put
in only a BeOpen copyright: *someone* is bound to gripe about that too,
provided I ever admit to it in public <wink>).
I personally would like to get Python out of the copyright *and* license
games forever, by releasing Python to the public domain (as, e.g., Ralph
Griswold did with the Icon language from the start -- and enjoyed a
hassle-free life ever after; yes, at least one closed-source copyrighted
commercial version of Icon did appear, but that was no skin off Prof.
Griswold's nose; he kept working on the PD one, and the commercial version
eventually gave up -- heck, rather than see their work wasted, they
contributed most of what they did back to the PD Icon Project!).
I don't believe there's any real downside to PD in America so long as you're
not afraid to compete on merit alone. Don't know about international law,
though.
> The copyrights are indisputable, but are not a problem.
Pshaw -- everything's disputable <wink>.
and-everything's-a-problem-ly y'rs - tim