[Docutils-develop] Re: Copyright and licensing

[David G. <go...@py...>]

[David Goodger]
>> It's up to you.  Please put a copyright line in each file, and add a
>> license file if necessary.  Please read this first:
>> <http://docutils.sf.net/spec/notes.html#copyrights-and-licensing>

[Aahz]
> Uh, that's bogus.

What's bogus about it?  It simply expresses my intentions for the project.

> Once something is in the public domain, you can't revert it

You should say, once something is in the public domain, it can never be
*removed* from the public domain.  It *can* be modified and copyrighted
though, by anybody.  For examples, look at all the Disney films that are
derivative works of public domain fairy tales.  In fact, anyone could just
take the Docutils code as-is, just replace the public domain declaration
lines in each file with their own copyright, and charge a million dollars
for it.  Nobody would buy it though, because the PD edition remains and
cannot be undone.  Our only loss would be that we wouldn't be able to use
any of the changes made by someone who slapped a copyright on.

In any case, so what?  It's not my intention to ever revert anything.  It
*is* my intention to release my code to the public without encumbrance of
any kind.  I don't even ask that people keep my name or copyright notice
intact.  (If they do, that's nice and I appreciate it, but I don't require
it.)  That's the essence of public domain.  It's so free that anybody can do
absolutely anything with their copy, including copyrighting it.  All they
can't do is slap a copyright on *my* copy or *yours*.

> (but as Tim Peters has pointed out numerous times, it's almost
> impossible to actually stick something in the public domain).

Hmm.  Lawrence Lessig's Creative Commons seems to contradict this:

    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/publicdomain

> You should change that page to "Python-style license".

No, I shouldn't, because that's not my intention.  If and when the
PythonLabs crew decides to integrate all or part of Docutils into the Python
distribution, they're free (and welcome!) to slap their own copyright on it
if they like.  And any contributor can choose their own license terms.  I
chose public domain, and ask that contributors consider it, that's all.
What's bogus about that?

-- 
David Goodger  <go...@py...>  Open-source projects:
  - Python Docutils: http://docutils.sourceforge.net/
    (includes reStructuredText: http://docutils.sf.net/rst.html)
  - The Go Tools Project: http://gotools.sourceforge.net/