From owner-freebsd-current Mon Aug 20 18:29:25 2001 Delivered-To: freebsd-current@freebsd.org Received: from gull.mail.pas.earthlink.net (gull.mail.pas.earthlink.net [207.217.121.85]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 86F8F37B407 for ; Mon, 20 Aug 2001 18:29:18 -0700 (PDT) (envelope-from cjc@earthlink.net) Received: from blossom.cjclark.org (dialup-209.247.136.151.Dial1.SanJose1.Level3.net [209.247.136.151]) by gull.mail.pas.earthlink.net (EL-8_9_3_3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id SAA23325; Mon, 20 Aug 2001 18:28:52 -0700 (PDT) Received: (from cjc@localhost) by blossom.cjclark.org (8.11.4/8.11.3) id f7L1RiG65910; Mon, 20 Aug 2001 18:27:44 -0700 (PDT) (envelope-from cjc) Date: Mon, 20 Aug 2001 18:27:21 -0700 From: "Crist J. Clark" To: Brian Somers Cc: Andrew Kenneth Milton , freebsd-current@FreeBSD.ORG, brian@freebsd-services.com Subject: Re: Copyright Contradiction in libalias Message-ID: <20010820182721.N313@blossom.cjclark.org> Reply-To: cjclark@alum.mit.edu References: <200108210110.f7L1AgU97857@hak.lan.Awfulhak.org> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline User-Agent: Mutt/1.2.5i In-Reply-To: <200108210110.f7L1AgU97857@hak.lan.Awfulhak.org>; from brian@Awfulhak.org on Tue, Aug 21, 2001 at 02:10:42AM +0100 Sender: owner-freebsd-current@FreeBSD.ORG Precedence: bulk List-ID: List-Archive: (Web Archive) List-Help: (List Instructions) List-Subscribe: List-Unsubscribe: X-Loop: FreeBSD.ORG On Tue, Aug 21, 2001 at 02:10:42AM +0100, Brian Somers wrote: > > +-------[ Brian Somers ]---------------------- > > | > Check with Charles to see if he really wants to abandon copyright claims > > | > to his code, or whether he was really implying some really liberal open source > > | > license. > > | > > | With the BSD Copyright (only) he keeps the intellectual copyright on > > | the original. That's what I've changed it to (as per his agreement). > > > > Oh, I thought he put in the comment to the effect it was in the Public Domain, > > if you did that you're naughty! d8) > > > > If he did that, he probably needs to rethink it. > > He originally wrote it to say it was in the public domain. I asked > him if he minded me making it a BSD license and he said ok.... only I > didn't do the whole job :*) If you look at the history of the files, they were imported into FreeBSD with the statement that they are public domain. I don't think there is any way he can take that back and claim copyright over them. Now, as to whether anyone can now claim a copyright over the contents since (not very substantial) changes have been made is something for lawyers to settle. It is now written policy, and I believe it was the understood, unwritten policy in the past, that any patches and additions to a file in FreeBSD are governed by the existing licensing of the file unless otherwise stated. This would indicate to me that this file is arguably still public domain. Again, IANAL. For now, as they stand, the licensing text within them is contradictory and should be "fixed." As for whether it's getting fixed the "right way" is something only a lawyer could answer, and I really doubt anyone is ever going to care enough about these couple of files to pay a lawyer to have a look. -- Crist J. Clark cjclark@alum.mit.edu To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-current" in the body of the message