4 ms·

Personally it's a mix of principle and practicality. On principle I'd like to be able to put code up on Github, tell people they can use it however they like an

by mojzu 5y ago

Personally it's a mix of principle and practicality. On principle I'd like to be able to put code up on Github, tell people they can use it however they like and to credit me if it suits them, but otherwise I don't want the copyright or any other associated responsibilities on it. And practically I have no ability to enforce the terms of any licence once the code is in public anyway, so why should I spend time engaging in the licencing theatre

smoldesu 5y ago
// Oops, I misunderstood the context of this discussion. Disregard this :p
- ShamelessC 5y ago
  What?
- aloe_falsa 5y ago
  "Slap a GPL3 in there" is pretty much the opposite of what the parent commenter wants, though. At 5500 words, GPL3 is a long read - I have a rough idea what it says, but can't say I've ever read and understood every word. Making my users do so might constitute cruel and unusual punishment :) 0BSD looks short and sweet, though. I don't need people using my libraries to include my LICENSE.txt, or give attribution, or tag any changes with their own copyright notice. Just take the code and do whatever you want, no strings attached.
  - goodpoint 5y ago
    > Making my users do so might constitute cruel and unusual punishment The very opposite. GPLv3 is written by lawyers and for very good reasons. The more detailed a license is the more clear it is. That's why it clearly defines what constitutes distribution and so on. This is also why things like rent contracts have long lists of what is allowed and expected and what is not, and when and why and so on: it creates clarity. Clarity means less debating in court. If you want legal trouble, sign a very short contract.
    - BeFlatXIII 5y ago
      > If you want legal trouble, sign a very short contract. If the length of contract is what is protecting you, you're already in court. If it's a jury trial, all bets are off no matter what the law or contract says.
      - goodpoint 5y ago
        > If the length of contract is what is protecting you, you're already in court. Not at all! A strong, detailed, clearly written contract reduces the amount of "wiggle room" for litigation. The other party is much more likely *not* to sue you in the first place if they know they would be fighting an uphill battle against a strong contract. That's why GPLv3 has anti-patent-troll clauses for example.

by mojzu 5y ago

smoldesu 5y ago

// Oops, I misunderstood the context of this discussion. Disregard this :p

ShamelessC 5y ago
What?
aloe_falsa 5y ago
"Slap a GPL3 in there" is pretty much the opposite of what the parent commenter wants, though. At 5500 words, GPL3 is a long read - I have a rough idea what it says, but can't say I've ever read and understood every word. Making my users do so might constitute cruel and unusual punishment :) 0BSD looks short and sweet, though. I don't need people using my libraries to include my LICENSE.txt, or give attribution, or tag any changes with their own copyright notice. Just take the code and do whatever you want, no strings attached.
- goodpoint 5y ago
  > Making my users do so might constitute cruel and unusual punishment The very opposite. GPLv3 is written by lawyers and for very good reasons. The more detailed a license is the more clear it is. That's why it clearly defines what constitutes distribution and so on. This is also why things like rent contracts have long lists of what is allowed and expected and what is not, and when and why and so on: it creates clarity. Clarity means less debating in court. If you want legal trouble, sign a very short contract.
  - BeFlatXIII 5y ago
    > If you want legal trouble, sign a very short contract. If the length of contract is what is protecting you, you're already in court. If it's a jury trial, all bets are off no matter what the law or contract says.
    - goodpoint 5y ago
      > If the length of contract is what is protecting you, you're already in court. Not at all! A strong, detailed, clearly written contract reduces the amount of "wiggle room" for litigation. The other party is much more likely *not* to sue you in the first place if they know they would be fighting an uphill battle against a strong contract. That's why GPLv3 has anti-patent-troll clauses for example.