Re: Intent to package: Gambit-C and MIT-Scsh
Karl M. Hegbloom wrote:
> Ok, but what about a `non-free' package. Gambit will need to go into
> non-free, and `scsh' might also...
You can put packages in non-free by listing "non-free/foo" as the
section, rather than just "foo".
> Here's the `scsh' licence; please advise:
This is non-free because it only permits "use". It should explicitly
permit modification and distribution, and distribution of modified
version.
The second paragraph essentially makes it postcardware for commercial
users. I would call that non-free, but I don't know what the DFSG
says about it. One problem is that it requires the user to notify the
authors, but says nothing about what should be done if the authors are
difficult to contact. (It is not uncommon for free software authors
to disappear off the face of the net after a few years.)
If the license said "send a postcard to this address" then it would be
better, it puts the responsibility of keeping that address valid on
the authors. I would still not call it free software, though. The
requirement makes it practically impossible to use parts of this
program in free software projects of reasonable popularity. (And
would the authors really want to get 10000 postcards? Popular free
software projects easily have that number of commercial users.)
> Copyright (c) 1993, 1994 by Richard Kelsey and Jonathan Rees.
> Copyright (c) 1994, 1995 by Olin Shivers and Brian D. Carlstrom.
>
> Use of this program for non-commercial purposes is permitted provided
> that such use is acknowledged both in the software itself and in
> accompanying documentation.
>
> Use of this program for commercial purposes is also permitted, but
> only if, in addition to the acknowledgement required for
> non-commercial users, written notification of such use is provided by
> the commercial user to the authors prior to the fabrication and
> distribution of the resulting software.
>
> This software is provided ``as is'' without express or implied warranty.
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