The State of Python

[Tim Peters]

[Tim]
> The decision to put something in the public domain is
> irrevocable, so stops that game before it starts.  In the area
> of programming languages, the decision to develop Icon
> (http://www.cs.arizona.edu/icon/) in the public domain has
> granted Ralph Griswold a long, happy and lawyer-free life.

[Dan Smart]
> WARNING (IANAL but have been advised by one)
> Putting something in the public domain involves releasing it
> without a license and I have been told that this is extremely
> risky.  Apparently the primary purpose of a BSD style license
> is to limit liability - typically to no more than you paid for
> the software (i.e. nothing). With out such a license clause,
> or indeed a license at all, you are potentially open to
> unlimited liability in the event that a user of your software
> suffers harm from such use - even though they paid nothing for
> it.  This struck me as insane, but I have been assured that this
> is the case.

So get rich quick:  download Icon, harm someone with it, and sue the Icon
Project.  The distribution is devoid of copyright notices, disclaimers, or
any of the other ritual gibberish we've gotten so used to we don't really
see it anyway.  Should be easy pickings!  Here's the top of a typical file:

/*
 * incheck.c - analyze a run-time operation using type information.
 *   Determine wither the operation can be in-lined and what kinds
 *   of parameter passing optimizations can be done.
 */
#include "../h/gsupport.h"
#include "ctrans.h"
...

Such a strange sight:  I barely recognize it, but I think it's code <wink>!
If you search very hard on the web site, you'll eventually find one line of
legalese hiding near the bottom of the overview file in the root of the FTP
area:

    All material here is in the public domain.

Think about "extremely risky" in light of that, and in light of all the tens
of thousands of other public domain works in the world:  if the risk is
indeed so great, where are the horror stories about the hapless public
domain victims?  Lawyers and paranoia form a positive feedback loop.
Sitting right where I am is extremely risky too, if a meteorite happens to
land on my roof.

Of course I am not a lawyer, and anyone betting (including but not limited
to) their life or career, on doing anything from (including but not limited
to) releasing software to brushing their teeth, had better ask a real lawyer
first.

constant-fear-is-no-way-to-live-ly y'rs  - tim