The source of Open Source
Posted On Wednesday, April 23rd, 2008 By Ravi
The term Open Source was coined by Bruce Perens, for the debian project, where the users get the complete code of the software, and they get to modify it, use it and redistribute it. In genera, an open source license is expected to meet the folowing 10 conditions. Free Redistribution: the software can be freely given away or sold. (This was intended to encourage sharing and use of the software on a legal basis.) Source Code: the source code must either be included or freely obtainable. (Without source code, making changes or modifications can be impossible.) Derived Works: redistribution of modifications must be allowed. (To allow legal sharing and to permit new features or repairs.) Integrity of The Author’s Source Code: licenses may require that modifications are redistributed only as patches. No Discrimination Against Persons or Groups: no one can be locked out. No Discrimination Against Fields of Endeavor: commercial users cannot be excluded. Distribution of License: The rights attached to the program must apply to all to whom the program is redistributed without the need for execution of an additional license by those parties. License Must Not Be Specific to a Product: the program cannot be licensed only as Continue Reading