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OPEN SOURCE
     101
Hope O’Keeffe
Emmet Devine
Library of Congress
Office of the General Counsel
loke@loc.gov



This presentation text is in the public domain.
NDIIPP/Open Source Discussion

 NDIIPP and Open Source
 Copyright and Licenses
 Open Source Licenses
 License Considerations
 Best Practices
NDIIPP/Open Source Discussion

 NDIIPP and Open Source
 Copyright and Licenses
 Open Source Licenses
 License Considerations
 Best Practices
NDIIPP and Open Source

   NDIIPP
    – A cooperative, collaborative community
    – Building a toolbox of software
   Open Source
    – Software programs
    – Built by collaborative communities
What Open Source is

 A software program or set of software
  technologies
 Made widely available
 In source code form
 For use, modification, and redistribution
 Under a license agreement with few
  restrictions
What Open Source isn't
   Proprietary software
    – “Shareware”
    – “Freeware”
   Public domain software
    – Lacks copyright protection because:
       • It is older than a certain age
       • It was created by a United States
         government employee
       • The owner dedicated the work into the
         public domain
    – No restrictions on use or derivatives
Benefits of Open Source
   For the developers
    – Access to source code – jumpstarts projects and innovation
    – Community of developers – testing, patching, extending
    – Lowered initial cost of adoption for potential market
   For the users
    – Access to source code – allows local customization
       • Not locked into vendor or product lifecycle
    – Community of developers – steady, small improvements
    – Lowered initial cost of adoption for potential product
   Users become involved as developers
NDIIPP/Open Source Discussion

 NDIIPP and Open Source
 Copyright and Licenses
 Open Source Licenses
 License Considerations
 Best Practices
Copyright and Licenses

 Copyright is legal protection for original works of
  authorship
 Software created after 1977 is automatically protected by
  copyright
   – If original, minimally creative and fixed in a tangible
     form
 Copyright law grants exclusive rights in the software to the
  owner of the copyright
   – Owner is originally the creator (or their employer)
   – But copyright can be transferred by contract
 The open source software license is a grant of rights to
  users who would not otherwise have the right to use the
  software
“Rights” included in Copyright

   Copyright owners have the exclusive
    rights “to do and to authorize”:
    – Reproduce the work
    – Create derivative works (which recast,
      transform, or adapt the work)
    – Distribute copies of the work
    – Perform the work publicly
    – Display the work publicly
Example of Copyright Derivatives

   If you love Romeo and Juliet, but hate the ending:
       • It’s in the public domain – write new last act, make copies
         of the entire work and distribute
       • You have a derivative work and have the copyright on
         the last act.
   If you love Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,
    but hate the ending:
       • It’s protected by copyright – can’t rewrite last chapter,
         make and distribute copies of the entire work without
         permission of the copyright holder
       • You have a lawsuit - but you hold the copyright in any
         original, minimally creative expression in the new last
         chapter
“Rights” not included in Copyright

   Copyright owners do not have any rights to
    any “idea, procedure, process, system, method
    of operation, concept, principle, or discovery”
    in the work
    – Patents protect these types of “ideas”
   Copyright protects the expression, not the
    idea.
Summary of Copyright Protection

 Copyright protection is automatic
 Copyright protects expressions of an idea, not
  the idea itself
 To create a derivative work, permissions must
  be obtained from the owner
Role of Licenses
 Licenses specify the terms under which the
  copyrighted work can be “used”
 When you use open source software, you
  assent to its license agreement. When you
  license your work, you give others the right to
  use it on those terms.
    – Differs from license agreements with Microsoft or
      Oracle or any commercial vendor only in the terms
      of the contract
    – The license agreement is legally binding – it is
      enforceable in court
    – The license specifies rights and obligations
Enforcement of Licenses
 Cease and desist letters are typical first step
 If negotiation fails, lawsuit for copyright infringement
    – If the license is violated, the user did not have permission to
      use – copy, modify or distribute – the work
   Remedies for copyright infringement include:
    –   Actual damages – based on proven monetary damages
    –   Statutory damages – up to $150,000, if willful infringement
    –   Injunctions – order to cease further use of the work
    –   Attorney’s fees
   An important limitation on recovery of damages
    – Statutory damages and attorney's fees only available if
      copyright holder registers the work prior to the infringement or
      not later than 3 months after work's publication
NDIIPP/Open Source Discussion

 NDIIPP and Open Source
 Copyright and Licenses
 Open Source Licenses
 License Considerations
 Best Practices
Open Source Licenses

   Open source software licenses grant users
    the right to:
    – Create derivative works by modifying the source code
    – Reproduce the work by creating copies of the software (in
      binary or source forms)
    – Distribute the work by making the software available for
      download (in either binary or source forms)
   The terms of license specify conditions under
    which the software may be used
    – Many license conditions relate to distribution of modifications
    – If you are not the holder of the copyright and have not been
      given permission to redistribute modifications under new
      terms, you can’t apply a new license to pre-existing code
OSI Open Source Definition
     Free redistribution
     Source code
     Derived works
     Integrity of the author’s source code
     No discrimination against persons or groups
     No discrimination against fields of endeavor
     Distribution of license
     License must not be specific to a product
     License must not restrict other software
     License must be technology-neutral

  See http://www.opensource.org/docs/osd
Important OSI Approved Licenses
         Apache Licenses (1.1 + 2.0)

         Artistic Licenses (Original + 2.0)

         BSD Licenses (New, Simplified)

         GNU Licenses (GPLv2, GPLv3,
          LGPL v2.1, LGPL v3, Affero v3)

         Mozilla Licenses (MPL 1.0,
          MPL 1.1)
Important Difference in Licenses

   A crucial difference among licenses is
    their “permissiveness” or “reciprocity”
    – If a license is “permissive”, it is possible to “close”
      the source but redistribute the binary
       • BSD and Apache licenses are permissive; the GPL is not
    – The more a license is “reciprocal”, the less likely the
      source can be “closed” and still be redistributed
       • GNU licenses are generally highly reciprocal
NDIIPP/Open Source Discussion

 NDIIPP and Open Source
 Copyright and Licenses
 Open Source Licenses
 License Considerations
 Best Practices
Which License? Considerations
   Your institution's policies
    – Employers can claim copyright of employee's work
   Your contractual obligations
    – Contracts can include a transfer of copyright
   The existing codebase
    – Reuse of any snippet of open source code for which
      you do not hold copyright is restricted by its license
Choosing a License
   Adopt a license approved by the Open Source
    Initiative (OSI) at opensource.org
   Avoid license proliferation, use a popular license
    like Apache, BSD, GPL, LGPL, or MPL
   Choosing a license can be like choosing a religion
    – How strongly do you feel about the statement “ALL Software
      should be free?”
    – Would you be upset, or proud if someone else makes money
      from your copyright?
    – If your project is wildly successful, will you still be happy with
      your license choice?
    Analogy used by Donald Smith, Eclipse Foundation, Open Source
      Licensing for Developers, http://www.eclipse.org/downloads/
        download.php?file=/technology/phoenix/talks/Licensing-for-
        Developers.ppt
If you are building on (or including)
existing Open Source code
   Review the licensor's interpretation of their license
    – Not because it is necessarily legally correct
   – But because it will be licensor’s argument in any dispute
 Not all licenses are compatible
    – GPL-licensed code can't be combined and distributed
      with BSD-licensed code
    – LGPL-licensed code can be utilized by BSD code
   Not all licenses define “use” of code identically
    – MPL distinguishes modifications by file contents
    – GPL distinguishes modifications by interfaces
If you are creating new Open
Source code
   Source code can be released under multiple
    licenses
    – Licenses do not grant exclusive use
   Copyright holders don't need license to copy,
    modify or distribute own works
    – Can distribute the source
    – Likely to produce “forks” if licenses are incompatible
      - when contributors only add their new code under
      one of the licenses
NDIIPP/Open Source Discussion

 NDIIPP and Open Source
 Copyright and Licenses
 Open Source Licenses
 License Considerations
 Best Practices
Challenges with Open Source

• Fragmented, abandoned,
  niche projects
   – Open source is evaluated
     like other software (e.g.
     Magic Quadrant)
• Documentation may be
  scant
• Support and training may
  be lacking
Best practices…begin at the end

 Placing works into open source is the
  beginning of development activity, not
  the end
 Upload to Source Forge or another
  portal
 Select a project management /
  development strategy
Resources
   Open Source Initiative – http://www.opensource.org
   Specific licenses
    – GPL - http://www.gnu.org/licenses/licenses.html
    – Apache - http://www.apache.org/licenses/
    – MPL - http://www.mozilla.org/MPL/
   Source Forge – http://www.sourceforge.net
   Creative Commons – http://creativecommons.org
   Open Source Lab, Oregon State University
    – http://osuosl.org
   Open Source Lab, Stanford University
    – http://www.stanford.edu/group/opensource/cgi-bin/blog/
Questions




Image: “Copyright,” http://xkcd.com/14/, used pursuant to Creative
  Commons Non Commercial Attribution license.

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QL-1FCJtCuf

  • 1. OPEN SOURCE 101 Hope O’Keeffe Emmet Devine Library of Congress Office of the General Counsel loke@loc.gov This presentation text is in the public domain.
  • 2. NDIIPP/Open Source Discussion  NDIIPP and Open Source  Copyright and Licenses  Open Source Licenses  License Considerations  Best Practices
  • 3. NDIIPP/Open Source Discussion  NDIIPP and Open Source  Copyright and Licenses  Open Source Licenses  License Considerations  Best Practices
  • 4. NDIIPP and Open Source  NDIIPP – A cooperative, collaborative community – Building a toolbox of software  Open Source – Software programs – Built by collaborative communities
  • 5. What Open Source is  A software program or set of software technologies  Made widely available  In source code form  For use, modification, and redistribution  Under a license agreement with few restrictions
  • 6. What Open Source isn't  Proprietary software – “Shareware” – “Freeware”  Public domain software – Lacks copyright protection because: • It is older than a certain age • It was created by a United States government employee • The owner dedicated the work into the public domain – No restrictions on use or derivatives
  • 7. Benefits of Open Source  For the developers – Access to source code – jumpstarts projects and innovation – Community of developers – testing, patching, extending – Lowered initial cost of adoption for potential market  For the users – Access to source code – allows local customization • Not locked into vendor or product lifecycle – Community of developers – steady, small improvements – Lowered initial cost of adoption for potential product  Users become involved as developers
  • 8. NDIIPP/Open Source Discussion  NDIIPP and Open Source  Copyright and Licenses  Open Source Licenses  License Considerations  Best Practices
  • 9. Copyright and Licenses  Copyright is legal protection for original works of authorship  Software created after 1977 is automatically protected by copyright – If original, minimally creative and fixed in a tangible form  Copyright law grants exclusive rights in the software to the owner of the copyright – Owner is originally the creator (or their employer) – But copyright can be transferred by contract  The open source software license is a grant of rights to users who would not otherwise have the right to use the software
  • 10. “Rights” included in Copyright  Copyright owners have the exclusive rights “to do and to authorize”: – Reproduce the work – Create derivative works (which recast, transform, or adapt the work) – Distribute copies of the work – Perform the work publicly – Display the work publicly
  • 11. Example of Copyright Derivatives  If you love Romeo and Juliet, but hate the ending: • It’s in the public domain – write new last act, make copies of the entire work and distribute • You have a derivative work and have the copyright on the last act.  If you love Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, but hate the ending: • It’s protected by copyright – can’t rewrite last chapter, make and distribute copies of the entire work without permission of the copyright holder • You have a lawsuit - but you hold the copyright in any original, minimally creative expression in the new last chapter
  • 12. “Rights” not included in Copyright  Copyright owners do not have any rights to any “idea, procedure, process, system, method of operation, concept, principle, or discovery” in the work – Patents protect these types of “ideas”  Copyright protects the expression, not the idea.
  • 13. Summary of Copyright Protection  Copyright protection is automatic  Copyright protects expressions of an idea, not the idea itself  To create a derivative work, permissions must be obtained from the owner
  • 14. Role of Licenses  Licenses specify the terms under which the copyrighted work can be “used”  When you use open source software, you assent to its license agreement. When you license your work, you give others the right to use it on those terms. – Differs from license agreements with Microsoft or Oracle or any commercial vendor only in the terms of the contract – The license agreement is legally binding – it is enforceable in court – The license specifies rights and obligations
  • 15. Enforcement of Licenses  Cease and desist letters are typical first step  If negotiation fails, lawsuit for copyright infringement – If the license is violated, the user did not have permission to use – copy, modify or distribute – the work  Remedies for copyright infringement include: – Actual damages – based on proven monetary damages – Statutory damages – up to $150,000, if willful infringement – Injunctions – order to cease further use of the work – Attorney’s fees  An important limitation on recovery of damages – Statutory damages and attorney's fees only available if copyright holder registers the work prior to the infringement or not later than 3 months after work's publication
  • 16. NDIIPP/Open Source Discussion  NDIIPP and Open Source  Copyright and Licenses  Open Source Licenses  License Considerations  Best Practices
  • 17. Open Source Licenses  Open source software licenses grant users the right to: – Create derivative works by modifying the source code – Reproduce the work by creating copies of the software (in binary or source forms) – Distribute the work by making the software available for download (in either binary or source forms)  The terms of license specify conditions under which the software may be used – Many license conditions relate to distribution of modifications – If you are not the holder of the copyright and have not been given permission to redistribute modifications under new terms, you can’t apply a new license to pre-existing code
  • 18. OSI Open Source Definition  Free redistribution  Source code  Derived works  Integrity of the author’s source code  No discrimination against persons or groups  No discrimination against fields of endeavor  Distribution of license  License must not be specific to a product  License must not restrict other software  License must be technology-neutral See http://www.opensource.org/docs/osd
  • 19. Important OSI Approved Licenses  Apache Licenses (1.1 + 2.0)  Artistic Licenses (Original + 2.0)  BSD Licenses (New, Simplified)  GNU Licenses (GPLv2, GPLv3, LGPL v2.1, LGPL v3, Affero v3)  Mozilla Licenses (MPL 1.0, MPL 1.1)
  • 20. Important Difference in Licenses  A crucial difference among licenses is their “permissiveness” or “reciprocity” – If a license is “permissive”, it is possible to “close” the source but redistribute the binary • BSD and Apache licenses are permissive; the GPL is not – The more a license is “reciprocal”, the less likely the source can be “closed” and still be redistributed • GNU licenses are generally highly reciprocal
  • 21. NDIIPP/Open Source Discussion  NDIIPP and Open Source  Copyright and Licenses  Open Source Licenses  License Considerations  Best Practices
  • 22. Which License? Considerations  Your institution's policies – Employers can claim copyright of employee's work  Your contractual obligations – Contracts can include a transfer of copyright  The existing codebase – Reuse of any snippet of open source code for which you do not hold copyright is restricted by its license
  • 23. Choosing a License  Adopt a license approved by the Open Source Initiative (OSI) at opensource.org  Avoid license proliferation, use a popular license like Apache, BSD, GPL, LGPL, or MPL  Choosing a license can be like choosing a religion – How strongly do you feel about the statement “ALL Software should be free?” – Would you be upset, or proud if someone else makes money from your copyright? – If your project is wildly successful, will you still be happy with your license choice? Analogy used by Donald Smith, Eclipse Foundation, Open Source Licensing for Developers, http://www.eclipse.org/downloads/ download.php?file=/technology/phoenix/talks/Licensing-for- Developers.ppt
  • 24. If you are building on (or including) existing Open Source code  Review the licensor's interpretation of their license – Not because it is necessarily legally correct – But because it will be licensor’s argument in any dispute  Not all licenses are compatible – GPL-licensed code can't be combined and distributed with BSD-licensed code – LGPL-licensed code can be utilized by BSD code  Not all licenses define “use” of code identically – MPL distinguishes modifications by file contents – GPL distinguishes modifications by interfaces
  • 25. If you are creating new Open Source code  Source code can be released under multiple licenses – Licenses do not grant exclusive use  Copyright holders don't need license to copy, modify or distribute own works – Can distribute the source – Likely to produce “forks” if licenses are incompatible - when contributors only add their new code under one of the licenses
  • 26. NDIIPP/Open Source Discussion  NDIIPP and Open Source  Copyright and Licenses  Open Source Licenses  License Considerations  Best Practices
  • 27. Challenges with Open Source • Fragmented, abandoned, niche projects – Open source is evaluated like other software (e.g. Magic Quadrant) • Documentation may be scant • Support and training may be lacking
  • 28. Best practices…begin at the end  Placing works into open source is the beginning of development activity, not the end  Upload to Source Forge or another portal  Select a project management / development strategy
  • 29. Resources  Open Source Initiative – http://www.opensource.org  Specific licenses – GPL - http://www.gnu.org/licenses/licenses.html – Apache - http://www.apache.org/licenses/ – MPL - http://www.mozilla.org/MPL/  Source Forge – http://www.sourceforge.net  Creative Commons – http://creativecommons.org  Open Source Lab, Oregon State University – http://osuosl.org  Open Source Lab, Stanford University – http://www.stanford.edu/group/opensource/cgi-bin/blog/
  • 30. Questions Image: “Copyright,” http://xkcd.com/14/, used pursuant to Creative Commons Non Commercial Attribution license.