From owner-freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Wed Jun 20 20:57:33 2012 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.freebsd.org (mx1.freebsd.org [69.147.83.52]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 11D4F1065674 for ; Wed, 20 Jun 2012 20:57:33 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from perrin@apotheon.com) Received: from oproxy7-pub.bluehost.com (oproxy7.bluehost.com [IPv6:2605:dc00:100:2::a7]) by mx1.freebsd.org (Postfix) with SMTP id B5DBF8FC08 for ; Wed, 20 Jun 2012 20:57:32 +0000 (UTC) Received: (qmail 22505 invoked by uid 0); 20 Jun 2012 20:57:31 -0000 Received: from unknown (HELO box543.bluehost.com) (74.220.219.143) by oproxy7.bluehost.com with SMTP; 20 Jun 2012 20:57:31 -0000 DKIM-Signature: v=1; a=rsa-sha256; q=dns/txt; c=relaxed/relaxed; d=apotheon.com; s=default; h=In-Reply-To:Content-Type:MIME-Version:References:Message-ID:Subject:To:From:Date; bh=7yiRgAOEPcBiaqy7bzbY/1zrOnu38Lxg9A8NzKwScXg=; b=alWxrtqVu5p0ZKp5uLssolqEpyAUqbRgUsMzmWOSEOWzb8RmphHjKXkLU3i6oMdP0aItw2jQ3UMO99XaIV40pTK7ja9pprwXlm5VtZfM8MGxbpPwUiCJzKZVP4wQaQ7R; Received: from [24.8.180.234] (port=60293 helo=localhost) by box543.bluehost.com with esmtpsa (TLSv1:AES128-SHA:128) (Exim 4.76) (envelope-from ) id 1ShRxy-0004p1-VI for freebsd-questions@freebsd.org; Wed, 20 Jun 2012 14:57:31 -0600 Date: Wed, 20 Jun 2012 14:57:31 -0600 From: Chad Perrin To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Message-ID: <20120620205731.GA26703@hemlock.hydra> Mail-Followup-To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org References: <20f61898ce668c96f8882981cf8e24f6@remailer.privacy.at> <4FE1AD27.8000704@gmail.com> <1340192731894-5720039.post@n5.nabble.com> <4FE1BD0E.5060300@pukruppa.de> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline In-Reply-To: User-Agent: Mutt/1.5.21 (2010-09-15) X-Identified-User: {2737:box543.bluehost.com:apotheon:apotheon.com} {sentby:smtp auth 24.8.180.234 authed with perrin@apotheon.com} Subject: Re: Why Clang X-BeenThere: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: User questions List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Wed, 20 Jun 2012 20:57:33 -0000 On Wed, Jun 20, 2012 at 10:06:31PM +0200, Wojciech Puchar wrote: > >I have some friends that develop software. They had released it under > >GNU umbrella. Later on, other folks were taking advantage and not > > isn't it that once you release your own work as GPL you don't really > own this and even you cannot use it in closed source software? When you license something, you still own the copyright. You can then release it under other licenses as well, and for versions you have modified you can release it under another license *only* if you choose, thus no longer having the GPL attached to those version. The old version's license, though, cannot be rescinded for those who have already received it under those terms, which then allows them to pass it on to others under the same license. This means that you can simultaneously offer a piece of software for which you own the copyright both under the GPL and as a paid-license product for those who want different license terms than the GPL, so yeah, you *can* use it in closed source software even when distributing it under the GPL at the same time if *you* own the copyright or if you get a separate license from whoever owns the copyright. The people who are restricted from using it in a closed-source project are those who do not "own" the copyright, do not pay the copyright holder for a different license, and acquire it under the GPL. In short, the people most restricted in such circumstances are the people who make up the open source development community. -- Chad Perrin [ original content licensed OWL: http://owl.apotheon.org ]