Download or read book Free and Open Source Software FOSS and other Alternative License Models written by Axel Metzger and published by Springer. This book was released on 2015-11-30 with total page 507 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book discusses the main legal questions raised by free and open source software (FOSS) licenses and other alternative license models, such as Creative Commons. The legal questions raised by FOSS and other alternative licenses have been the subject of an intense international debate among legal scholars and practising lawyers in the last years. Courts in different jurisdictions have confirmed that the core features of FOSS licenses are compliant with the respective applicable laws and thus enforceable in the respective jurisdictions. What is still missing so far is an in-depth comparative analysis of the legal issues raised by FOSS, Creative Commons and other alternative license on a worldwide scale. This book presents a general report on FOSS licenses and alternative license models to establish common ground and enable comparison between jurisdictions. The general report is followed by 24 national reports covering the world's most important IT-markets. General and national reports use the same structure to facilitate the comparison. The book shows that despite the differences in their origins, all FOSS projects use detailed licenses for the organisation of their communities. It also shows the differences in the proofing of these licenses by courts in some jurisdictions and the tailor-made provisions established by some legislators to solve the legal issues raised by the license model.

Download or read book Understanding Open Source and Free Software Licensing written by Andrew M. St. Laurent and published by "O'Reilly Media, Inc.". This book was released on 2004-08-16 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: If you've held back from developing open source or free software projects because you don't understand the implications of the various licenses, you're not alone. Many developers believe in releasing their software freely, but have hesitated to do so because they're concerned about losing control over their software. Licensing issues are complicated, and both the facts and fallacies you hear word-of-mouth can add to the confusion.Understanding Open Source and Free Software Licensing helps you make sense of the different options available to you. This concise guide focuses on annotated licenses, offering an in-depth explanation of how they compare and interoperate, and how license choices affect project possibilities. Written in clear language that you don't have to be a lawyer to understand, the book answers such questions as: What rights am I giving up? How will my use of OS/FS licensing affect future users or future developers? Does a particular use of this software--such as combining it with proprietary software--leave me vulnerable to lawsuits?Following a quick look at copyright law, contracts, and the definition of "open source," the book tackles the spectrum of licensing, including: The MIT (or X), BSD, Apache and Academic Free licenses The GPL, LGPL, and Mozilla licenses The QT, Artistic, and Creative Commons licenses Classic Proprietary licenses Sun Community Source license and Microsoft Shared Source project The book wraps up with a look at the legal effects--both positive and negative--of open source/free software licensing.Licensing is a major part of what open source and free software are all about, but it's still one of the most complicated areas of law. Even the very simple licenses are tricky. Understanding Open Source and Free Software Licensing bridges the gap between the open source vision and the practical implications of its legal underpinnings. If open source and free software licenses interest you, this book will help you understand them. If you're an open source/free software developer, this book is an absolute necessity.

Download or read book General Reports of the XIXth Congress of the International Academy of Comparative Law Rapports G n raux du XIX me Congr s de l Acad mie Internationale de Droit Compar written by Martin Schauer and published by Springer. This book was released on 2017-06-01 with total page 625 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book deals with convergences of legal doctrine despite jurisdictional, cultural, and political barriers, and of divergences due to such barriers, examining topics that are of vital importance to contemporary legal scholars. Written by leading scholars from more than twenty countries, its thirty-two chapters present a comparative analysis of cutting-edge legal topics of the 21st century. While each of the countries covered stands alone as a sovereign state, in a technologically advanced world their disparate systems nonetheless show comparable strategies in dealing with complex legal issues. The book is a critical addition to the library of any scholar hoping to keep abreast of the major trends in contemporary law. It covers a vast area of topics that are dealt with from a comparative point of view and represents the current state of law in each area. ​

Download or read book Producing Open Source Software written by Karl Fogel and published by "O'Reilly Media, Inc.". This book was released on 2005-10-07 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The corporate market is now embracing free, "open source" software like never before, as evidenced by the recent success of the technologies underlying LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP). Each is the result of a publicly collaborative process among numerous developers who volunteer their time and energy to create better software. The truth is, however, that the overwhelming majority of free software projects fail. To help you beat the odds, O'Reilly has put together Producing Open Source Software, a guide that recommends tried and true steps to help free software developers work together toward a common goal. Not just for developers who are considering starting their own free software project, this book will also help those who want to participate in the process at any level. The book tackles this very complex topic by distilling it down into easily understandable parts. Starting with the basics of project management, it details specific tools used in free software projects, including version control, IRC, bug tracking, and Wikis. Author Karl Fogel, known for his work on CVS and Subversion, offers practical advice on how to set up and use a range of tools in combination with open mailing lists and archives. He also provides several chapters on the essentials of recruiting and motivating developers, as well as how to gain much-needed publicity for your project. While managing a team of enthusiastic developers -- most of whom you've never even met -- can be challenging, it can also be fun. Producing Open Source Software takes this into account, too, as it speaks of the sheer pleasure to be had from working with a motivated team of free software developers.

Download or read book Best Practices for commercial use of open source software written by Karl Michael Popp and published by BoD – Books on Demand. This book was released on 2019-10-30 with total page 126 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book enables you to leverage the state-of-the-art of creating open source based business models and of managing open source in the development cycle of commercial software and during due diligence in mergers and acquisitions. In addition, it provides information about why investments in open source makes sense. Practitioners, investors and consultants created this book to help professionals in the software business like investors, executives, business developers, product managers, architects, developers, quality managers, development operations managers as well as students to get acquainted and proficient in using open source products in a commercial context. First, the focus is on business model impact of open source products and open source licenses. Dr. Karl Michael Popp gives an overview of the different types of business models for open source companies. Dr. Josef Waltl shows how open source licenses and intellectual property strategies can create a unique business model based on a combination of open source and proprietary software. Then, the focus is on detection and license compliance aspects of open source software in mergers and acquisitions. The acquisition of a software vendor requires the review of intellectual property rights including open source license compliance as described by Dr. Karl Michael Popp. The following new chapter, authored by Joseph Jacks from OSS Capital, provides fundamentals of the open source business by elaborating on value creation and value capture for commercial open source companies. Then, two chapters cover the offerings of tool vendors for governance of open source software but also for development enablement. First, Bill Weinberg and Greg Olsen show the broad offering of solutions of Black Duck Software, a provider for open source governance and enablement tools. The next, new chapter, provided by Snyk, focuses on development aspects of using open source software as part of commercial products like assistance for developers in selection and in continuously updating open source components during the software development lifecycle.

Download or read book Free and Open Source Software written by Nishant Pal and published by . This book was released on 2021-12 with total page 28 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: FOSS (free and open-source) software can be classified as free and open-source software. This means that anyone can freely copy, study, modify, and alter the software in any way. The source code is also openly shared to encourage people to improve the software's design. This contrasts with proprietary software which is subject to restrictive copyright licensing, and where the source code is often hidden from users. FOSS preserves software users' civil liberty rights (see below, the Four Essential Freedoms). FOSS also offers many benefits, including lower software costs, greater security and stability (especially with regard to malware), protection of privacy, education and more control over hardware. Open-source and free operating systems like Linux and the descendants of BSD are used widely today to power millions of computers, smartphones, tablets, and other devices. Many software packages use open-source and free-software licenses. Many software packages use open-source and free-software licenses. The online social movements behind widespread production of FOSS are the free-software movement (or FLOSS) and the open-source movement (or free/libre). OVERVIEW OF FOSS FOSS (free and open-source) refers to software that can be considered free and open-source. FOSS (free-and open-source software), allows users to inspect the source code. It also provides greater control over the software's functions than proprietary software. The term "free software", however, does not refer only to the cost of the software. It also refers to whether the license protects civil liberties (free as in free speech and not like "free beer") There are many related terms and abbreviations to free and open source software (FOSS and F/OSS), free/libre, and open-source (FLOSS and F/LOSS) that FSF prefers over FOSS. Free or free/libre is their preferred term.

Download or read book Music Borrowing and Copyright Law written by Enrico Bonadio and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2023-10-19 with total page 485 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This ground-breaking book examines the multifaceted dynamics between copyright law and music borrowing within a rich diversity of music genres from across the world. It evaluates how copyright laws under different generic conventions may influence, or are influenced by, time-honoured creative borrowing practices. Leading experts from around the world scrutinise a carefully selected range of musical genres, including pop, hip-hop, jazz, blues, electronic and dance music, as well as a diversity of region-specific genres, such as Jamaican music, River Plate Tango, Irish folk music, Hungarian folk music, Flamenco, Indian traditional music, Australian indigenous music, Maori music and many others. This genre-conscious analysis builds on a theoretical section in which musicologists and lawyers offer their insights into fundamental issues concerning music genre categorisation, the typology of music borrowing and copyright law's ontological struggle with musical borrowing in theory and practice. The chapters are threaded together by a central theme, ie, that the cumulative nature of music creativity is the result of collective bargaining processes among many 'musicking' parties that have socially constructed creative music authorship under a rich mix of generic conventions.

Download or read book Open Source Approaches in Spatial Data Handling written by Brent Hall and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2008-09-27 with total page 285 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The role open-source geospatial software plays in data handling within the spatial information technology industry is the overarching theme of the book. It also examines new tools and applications for those already using OS approaches to software development.

Download or read book The Handbook of Peer Production written by Mathieu O'Neil and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2021-01-20 with total page 464 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The definitive reference work with comprehensive analysis and review of peer production Peer production is no longer the sole domain of small groups of technical or academic elites. The internet has enabled millions of people to collectively produce, revise, and distribute everything from computer operating systems and applications to encyclopedia articles and film and television databases. Today, peer production has branched out to include wireless networks, online currencies, biohacking, and peer-to-peer urbanism, amongst others. The Handbook of Peer Production outlines central concepts, examines current and emerging areas of application, and analyzes the forms and principles of cooperation that continue to impact multiple areas of production and sociality. Featuring contributions from an international team of experts in the field, this landmark work maps the origins and manifestations of peer production, discusses the factors and conditions that are enabling, advancing, and co-opting peer production, and considers its current impact and potential consequences for the social order. Detailed chapters address the governance, political economy, and cultures of peer production, user motivations, social rules and norms, the role of peer production in social change and activism, and much more. Filling a gap in available literature as the only extensive overview of peer production’s modes of generating informational goods and services, this groundbreaking volume: Offers accessible, up-to-date information to both specialists and non-specialists across academia, industry, journalism, and public advocacy Includes interviews with leading practitioners discussing the future of peer production Discusses the history, traditions, key debates, and pioneers of peer production Explores technologies for peer production, openness and licensing, peer learning, open design and manufacturing, and free and open-source software The Handbook of Peer Production is an indispensable resource for students, instructors, researchers, and professionals working in fields including communication studies, science and technology studies, sociology, and management studies, as well as those interested in the network information economy, the public domain, and new forms of organization and networking.

Download or read book EU Copyright Law written by Irini Stamatoudi and published by Edward Elgar Publishing. This book was released on 2021-03-26 with total page 1303 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This significantly revised and updated second edition addresses the rapid development of EU copyright law in relation to the advancement of new technologies, the need for a borderless digital market and the considerable number of EU legal instruments enacted as a result. Taking a comparative approach, the Commentary provides comprehensive coverage and in-depth commentary on each of the EU legal instruments and policies, both from an EU and an international perspective. Alongside full legislative analysis and article-by-article commentary, the Commentary illustrates the underlying basic principles of free movement and non-discrimination and provides insights into the influence of copyright on other areas of EU policy, including telecoms and bilateral trade agreements.

Download or read book Security Rights in Intellectual Property written by Eva-Maria Kieninger and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2020-06-11 with total page 711 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book discusses the main legal and economic challenges to the creation and enforcement of security rights in intellectual property and explores possible avenues of reform, such as more specific rules for security in IP rights and better coordination between intellectual property law and secured transactions law. In the context of business financing, intellectual property rights are still only reluctantly used as collateral, and on a small scale. If they are used at all, it is mostly done in the form of a floating charge or some other “all-asset” security right. The only sector in which security rights in intellectual property play a major role, at least in some jurisdictions, is the financing of movies. On the other hand, it is virtually undisputed that security rights in intellectual property could be economically valuable, or even crucial, for small and medium-sized enterprises – especially for start-ups, which are often very innovative and creative, but have limited access to corporate financing and must rely on capital markets (securitization, capital market). Therefore, they need to secure bank loans, yet lack their own traditional collateral, such as land.

Download or read book Digital Review of Asia Pacific 2007 2008 written by Idrc, and published by IDRC. This book was released on 2008-01-07 with total page 391 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The biennial Digital Review of Asia Pacific is a comprehensive guide to the state-of-practice and trends in information and communication technologies for development (ICT4D) in Asia PacificThis third edition (2007-2008) covers 31 countries and economies, including North Korea for the first time. Each country chapter presents key ICT policies, applications and initiatives for national development. In addition, five thematic chapters provide a synthesis of some of the key issues in ICT4D in the region, including mobile and wireless technologies, risk communication, intellectual property regimes and localization.The authors are drawn from government, academe, industry and civil society, providing a broad perspective on the use of ICTs for human development.

Download or read book Forge Your Future with Open Source written by VM (Vicky) Brasseur and published by Pragmatic Bookshelf. This book was released on 2018-10-08 with total page 317 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Free and open source is the foundation of software development, and it's built by people just like you. Discover the fundamental tenets that drive the movement. Take control of your career by selecting the right project to meet your professional goals. Master the language and avoid the pitfalls that typically ensnare new contributors. Join a community of like-minded people and change the world. Programmers, writers, designers, and everyone interested in software will make their mark through free and open source software contributions. Free and open source software is the default choice for the programming languages and technologies which run our world today, and it's all built and maintained by people just like you. No matter your skill level or area of expertise, with this book you will contribute to free and open source software projects. Using this practical approach you'll understand not only the mechanics of contributing, but also how doing so helps your career as well as the community. This book doesn't assume that you're a programmer, or even that you have prior experience with free and open source software. Learn what open source is, where it came from, and why it's important. Start on the right foot by mastering the structure and tools you need before you contribute. Choose the right project for you, amplifying the impact of your contribution. Submit your first contribution, whether it's code, writing, design, or community organising. Find out what to do when things don't go the way you expect. Discover how to start your own project and make it friendly and welcoming to contributors. Anyone can contribute! Make your mark today and help others while also helping yourself.

Download or read book The Cathedral the Bazaar written by Eric S. Raymond and published by "O'Reilly Media, Inc.". This book was released on 2001-02-01 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Open source provides the competitive advantage in the Internet Age. According to the August Forrester Report, 56 percent of IT managers interviewed at Global 2,500 companies are already using some type of open source software in their infrastructure and another 6 percent will install it in the next two years. This revolutionary model for collaborative software development is being embraced and studied by many of the biggest players in the high-tech industry, from Sun Microsystems to IBM to Intel.The Cathedral & the Bazaar is a must for anyone who cares about the future of the computer industry or the dynamics of the information economy. Already, billions of dollars have been made and lost based on the ideas in this book. Its conclusions will be studied, debated, and implemented for years to come. According to Bob Young, "This is Eric Raymond's great contribution to the success of the open source revolution, to the adoption of Linux-based operating systems, and to the success of open source users and the companies that supply them."The interest in open source software development has grown enormously in the past year. This revised and expanded paperback edition includes new material on open source developments in 1999 and 2000. Raymond's clear and effective writing style accurately describing the benefits of open source software has been key to its success. With major vendors creating acceptance for open source within companies, independent vendors will become the open source story in 2001.

Download or read book Open Source Licensing written by Lawrence E. Rosen and published by Prentice Hall. This book was released on 2005 with total page 436 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "I have studied Rosen's book in detail and am impressed with its scope and content. I strongly recommend it to anybody interested in the current controversies surrounding open source licensing." --John Terpstra, Samba.org; cofounder, Samba-Team "Linux and open source software have forever altered the computing landscape. The important conversations no longer revolve around the technology but rather the business and legal issues. Rosen's book is must reading for anyone using or providing open source solutions." --Stuart Open Source Development Labs A Complete Guide to the Law of Open Source for Developers, Managers, and Lawyers Now that open source software is blossoming around the world, it is crucial to understand how open source licenses work--and their solid legal foundations. Open Source Initiative general counsel Lawrence Rosen presents a plain-English guide to open source law for developers, managers, users, and lawyers. Rosen clearly explains the intellectual property laws that support open source licensing, carefully reviews today's leading licenses, and helps you make the best choices for your project or organization. Coverage includes: Explanation of why the SCO litigation and other attacks won't derail open source Dispelling the myths of open source licensing Intellectual property law for nonlawyers: ownership and licensing of copyrights, patents, and trademarks "Academic licenses" BSD, MIT, Apache, and beyond The "reciprocal bargain" at the heart of the GPL Alternative licenses: Mozilla, CPL, OSL and AFL Benefits of open source, and the obligations and risks facing businesses that deploy open source software Choosing the right license: considering business models, product architecture, IP ownership, license compatibility issues, relicensing, and more Enforcing the terms and conditions of open source licenses Shared source, eventual source, and other alternative models to open source Protecting yourself against lawsuits

Download or read book The Rise of Open Source Software written by IntroBooks Team and published by IntroBooks. This book was released on with total page 28 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Open source software finds its connections with free software and is part of free and open source software over the extended term. Open-source software (OSS) is a form of computer software program that releases source code under a licensing legitimacy wherein the copyright holder allows users the privilege to analyze, modify and share the software to anyone and for any productive purpose. Open-source software may be created either freely and collaboratively. Open-source software is a case in point of open collaboration. The progress of open-source software will offer assorted perspectives beyond those of a single enterprise A 2008 study from the Standish Group reported that the implementation of open-source software models culminated in savings for customers of around $60 billion (£ 48 billion) annually. Initiatives of open source software are undertaken and managed by a network of voluntary programming associations and are commonly used in the gamut of both free and commercial outputs.

Download or read book Free open Source Software Development written by Stefan Koch and published by IGI Global. This book was released on 2005-01-01 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Free/Open Source Software Development" uses a multitude of research approaches to explore free and open source software development processes, attributes of their products, and the workings within the development communities.