[Columba-devel] Re: licensing considerations

[Vincent K. <vin...@ma...>]

> Hi guys,
>  
>  we are currently considering wether to change parts of Columba from
>  the GPL to LGPL license, etc.. 


Hi Frederik,

I am currently looking for a mail client to include into an application 
I am developing for a client.  Everything is written in Java, so Columba 
would fit pretty well.  I have looked at various other mail clients, but 
Columba seems the most promising (I love vFolders, great idea!).

I just have one problem and it's a big one: GPL...  My client (who is 
paying for the development of the rest of the application) does not want 
all the code to go into GPL.

So I was wondering if you would consider changing the licence to a more 
open one (Apache, Mozilla,...  whatever would allow the incorporation of 
Columba into a "commercial" application, as defined by the GPL).  What 
would happen if you do that?  I believe everyone could win:
- my client would have a nice extension to the software I am developing 
for him (with a very low cost: he would not pay for it)
- I could integrate a nice piece of software into the project (I would 
only be paid for integration work, of course, not for your work)
- You would gain feedback and code that I will provide (because by using 
Columba, I will be motivated to improve it)

I know I am talking in my own interest here, but I have never considered 
the GPL to be so "open".  It restricts what you can do with a piece of 
software, while other licences do not restrict usage and, in such, have 
a much greater following.  Just look at Apache/Jakarta...

This is just a suggestion...  Please let me know what your feelings are 
about this.

In any case, kudos for a great piece of software...

Vincent