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Open source license woes

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  • Greg UtasG Greg Utas

    I don't think anyone would want the code in my articles, since they're usually simplified fragments or outright sketches. But since my GitHub license is GPL-3, I just use that for the articles. Our residential address is also unpublished. :cool:

    Robust Services Core | Software Techniques for Lemmings | Articles
    The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.

    H Offline
    H Offline
    honey the codewitch
    wrote on last edited by
    #10

    O/T: You were the one I was talking to earlier about an automatically generated assignment constructor in C++, right? This may not be the cleanest way to do it but it's hassle free, and almost as short as an autoimplemented memberwise-copy version would be:

    MyStruct(const MyStruct& rhs) { memcpy(this,&rhs,sizeof(MyStruct)); }

    Real programmers use butterflies

    Greg UtasG 1 Reply Last reply
    0
    • H honey the codewitch

      O/T: You were the one I was talking to earlier about an automatically generated assignment constructor in C++, right? This may not be the cleanest way to do it but it's hassle free, and almost as short as an autoimplemented memberwise-copy version would be:

      MyStruct(const MyStruct& rhs) { memcpy(this,&rhs,sizeof(MyStruct)); }

      Real programmers use butterflies

      Greg UtasG Offline
      Greg UtasG Offline
      Greg Utas
      wrote on last edited by
      #11

      _memcpy_?! You'll be going to bed hungry tonight! But that's basically what

      Struct(const Struct& that) = default;

      does, though it's more paternalistic. If Struct owns no resources and its constructor has no side effects, go for it and revel in your naughtiness. One thing to note is that a C++ copy constructor only invokes a base class constructor, not copy constructor, unless explicitly implemented to do otherwise. I've now reached 🍷🍷🍷🍷, so you'd best find a proper authority lest I've led you astray! :laugh:

      Robust Services Core | Software Techniques for Lemmings | Articles
      The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.

      <p><a href="https://github.com/GregUtas/robust-services-core/blob/master/README.md">Robust Services Core</a>
      <em>The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.</em></p>

      H 1 Reply Last reply
      0
      • Greg UtasG Greg Utas

        _memcpy_?! You'll be going to bed hungry tonight! But that's basically what

        Struct(const Struct& that) = default;

        does, though it's more paternalistic. If Struct owns no resources and its constructor has no side effects, go for it and revel in your naughtiness. One thing to note is that a C++ copy constructor only invokes a base class constructor, not copy constructor, unless explicitly implemented to do otherwise. I've now reached 🍷🍷🍷🍷, so you'd best find a proper authority lest I've led you astray! :laugh:

        Robust Services Core | Software Techniques for Lemmings | Articles
        The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.

        H Offline
        H Offline
        honey the codewitch
        wrote on last edited by
        #12

        I would only use it for structs whose types I could hypothetically place in a union - that is, trivial things. Wait. are you saying

        Struct(const Struct& that) = default;

        Will compile? I misunderstood you earlier, if so. I thought you were saying that as a wish list item. When was it added to the spec? There's so much to C++ if you stop using it for a few years you can miss out on features. :sigh:

        Real programmers use butterflies

        Greg UtasG 2 Replies Last reply
        0
        • H honey the codewitch

          I would only use it for structs whose types I could hypothetically place in a union - that is, trivial things. Wait. are you saying

          Struct(const Struct& that) = default;

          Will compile? I misunderstood you earlier, if so. I thought you were saying that as a wish list item. When was it added to the spec? There's so much to C++ if you stop using it for a few years you can miss out on features. :sigh:

          Real programmers use butterflies

          Greg UtasG Offline
          Greg UtasG Offline
          Greg Utas
          wrote on last edited by
          #13

          Indeed! C++11, I believe. I don't use anything after that.

          Robust Services Core | Software Techniques for Lemmings | Articles
          The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.

          <p><a href="https://github.com/GregUtas/robust-services-core/blob/master/README.md">Robust Services Core</a>
          <em>The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.</em></p>

          H L 2 Replies Last reply
          0
          • Greg UtasG Greg Utas

            Indeed! C++11, I believe. I don't use anything after that.

            Robust Services Core | Software Techniques for Lemmings | Articles
            The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.

            H Offline
            H Offline
            honey the codewitch
            wrote on last edited by
            #14

            OMG you're right. I think I remember encountering it once and making a mental note of it, and then forgetting the mental note. I love C++. I'm always learning new stuff. thanks.

            Real programmers use butterflies

            1 Reply Last reply
            0
            • H honey the codewitch

              I would only use it for structs whose types I could hypothetically place in a union - that is, trivial things. Wait. are you saying

              Struct(const Struct& that) = default;

              Will compile? I misunderstood you earlier, if so. I thought you were saying that as a wish list item. When was it added to the spec? There's so much to C++ if you stop using it for a few years you can miss out on features. :sigh:

              Real programmers use butterflies

              Greg UtasG Offline
              Greg UtasG Offline
              Greg Utas
              wrote on last edited by
              #15

              You can now default any special member function: - constructor - destructor - copy constructor - move constructor - copy operator - move operator EDIT: And so the Big 3 (destructor, copy constructor, copy operator)--the guideline being that if you have one, you probably need the others--became the Big 5. Not to be confused with the Big 5 in Cantonese...

              Robust Services Core | Software Techniques for Lemmings | Articles
              The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.

              <p><a href="https://github.com/GregUtas/robust-services-core/blob/master/README.md">Robust Services Core</a>
              <em>The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.</em></p>

              1 Reply Last reply
              0
              • Greg UtasG Greg Utas

                Indeed! C++11, I believe. I don't use anything after that.

                Robust Services Core | Software Techniques for Lemmings | Articles
                The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.

                L Offline
                L Offline
                Lost User
                wrote on last edited by
                #16

                Greg Utas wrote:

                I don't use anything after that.

                Me either, although I was just porting some code last week to use std::filesystem[^] and that is extremely useful addition.

                H 1 Reply Last reply
                0
                • L Lost User

                  Greg Utas wrote:

                  I don't use anything after that.

                  Me either, although I was just porting some code last week to use std::filesystem[^] and that is extremely useful addition.

                  H Offline
                  H Offline
                  honey the codewitch
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #17

                  Ugh, you two. Years of .NET and here I am, rusty at C++ and C++ with all these new features to boot. I'm glad I'm back in the fold, though clearly I have some catching up to do. :)

                  Real programmers use butterflies

                  1 Reply Last reply
                  0
                  • L Lost User

                    Yeah, I need to decode Punycode in a project. So I find myself reading the RFC[^]. Oh look, there is a sample encoder/decoder right there in the RFC! It's my lucky day. But wait... LibIDN[^] has a verbatim copy of this code with almost no changes with the GNU license slapped onto it. But wait... the RFC is also 'Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2003). All Rights Reserved.' at the bottom which isn't mentioned anywhere on the GNU provided code. I can infer that I am not the first person to ask about this... the GNU header says the following:

                    /*
                    * This file is derived from RFC 3492bis written by Adam M. Costello,
                    * downloaded from http://www.nicemice.net/idn/punycode-spec.gz on
                    * 2015-03-02 with SHA1 a966a8017f6be579d74a50a226accc7607c40133, a
                    * copy of which is stored in the GNU Libidn version controlled
                    * repository under doc/specification/punycode-spec.gz.

                    This is legal speak for 'We took this from a work in the public domain'. This is like following a spider web... let's keep following the threads. So let's check the original licence at http://www.nicemice.net/idn/punycode-spec.gz[^]

                    B. Disclaimer and license

                    Regarding this entire document or any portion of it (including
                    the pseudocode and C code), the author makes no guarantees and
                    is not responsible for any damage resulting from its use.  **The
                    author grants irrevocable permission to anyone to use, modify,
                    and distribute it in any way that does not diminish the rights**
                    of anyone else to use, modify, and distribute it, provided that
                    redistributed derivative works do not contain misleading author or
                    version information.  Derivative works need not be licensed under
                    similar terms.
                    

                    So without being a lawyer I interpret this as a guy named Adam wrote the Punycode RFC and put it into the public domain. Then the 'The Internet Society' slapped a copyright on the code. Then someone working on LibIDN copied the code and slapped a third lice

                    D Offline
                    D Offline
                    DRHuff
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #18

                    So.... it's licenses all the way down... :-D

                    If you can't laugh at yourself - ask me and I will do it for you.

                    1 Reply Last reply
                    0
                    • H honey the codewitch

                      The GPL turned me off of anything GNU. I use the MIT license for 99% of my stuff. And that's trashy what they're doing. I'm glad nobody can take my public domain work (like my GLR parsing code) off CP and slap a copyright on it. If they tried someone could just find my work at CP. It sounds like Adam's work should be accessible. Can't you derive from that, and tell all of these copyright/license trolls to take a hike? That's what I would do.

                      Real programmers use butterflies

                      J Offline
                      J Offline
                      Jorgen Andersson
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #19

                      You should take a look at the CP License, it's basically the same purpose as the MIT, but it adds a bit of protection for you. Chris went through the whole license quagmire a few years ago and decided to create his own license[^] (with the help of a lawyer IIRC) to fit the whole purpose of Codeproject. Chris's comparison for most open licenses is over here: Licenses[^] With links to the actual license texts.

                      Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello Never stop dreaming - Freddie Kruger

                      M 1 Reply Last reply
                      0
                      • J Jorgen Andersson

                        You should take a look at the CP License, it's basically the same purpose as the MIT, but it adds a bit of protection for you. Chris went through the whole license quagmire a few years ago and decided to create his own license[^] (with the help of a lawyer IIRC) to fit the whole purpose of Codeproject. Chris's comparison for most open licenses is over here: Licenses[^] With links to the actual license texts.

                        Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello Never stop dreaming - Freddie Kruger

                        M Offline
                        M Offline
                        Member_14857213
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #20

                        Just FYI, from what I read it seems like CPOL isn't compatible with GNU GPL: - So if you have a GNU GPL dependency it might be illegal to use a CPOL license on your project, - and it might be illegal for anyone who uses a (viral) GNU GPL dependency to use your work under a CPOL license. license compatibility - Can I use CodeProject code in a GPL project? - Open Source Stack Exchange[^]

                        Quote:

                        CPOL is not an open source license according to the OSI definition. It has a clause which does not allow it to be used for any purpose as mandated by the GPL or MIT license:

                        Quote:

                        You agree not to use the Work for illegal, immoral or improper purposes, or on pages containing illegal, immoral or improper material.

                        If that's true it makes CPOL more restrictive than BSD, can anybody weigh in on this? Was this intentional?

                        J Greg UtasG C 3 Replies Last reply
                        0
                        • M Member_14857213

                          Just FYI, from what I read it seems like CPOL isn't compatible with GNU GPL: - So if you have a GNU GPL dependency it might be illegal to use a CPOL license on your project, - and it might be illegal for anyone who uses a (viral) GNU GPL dependency to use your work under a CPOL license. license compatibility - Can I use CodeProject code in a GPL project? - Open Source Stack Exchange[^]

                          Quote:

                          CPOL is not an open source license according to the OSI definition. It has a clause which does not allow it to be used for any purpose as mandated by the GPL or MIT license:

                          Quote:

                          You agree not to use the Work for illegal, immoral or improper purposes, or on pages containing illegal, immoral or improper material.

                          If that's true it makes CPOL more restrictive than BSD, can anybody weigh in on this? Was this intentional?

                          J Offline
                          J Offline
                          Jorgen Andersson
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #21

                          I think the best person to answer that is @chris-maunder

                          Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello Never stop dreaming - Freddie Kruger

                          M 1 Reply Last reply
                          0
                          • M Member_14857213

                            Just FYI, from what I read it seems like CPOL isn't compatible with GNU GPL: - So if you have a GNU GPL dependency it might be illegal to use a CPOL license on your project, - and it might be illegal for anyone who uses a (viral) GNU GPL dependency to use your work under a CPOL license. license compatibility - Can I use CodeProject code in a GPL project? - Open Source Stack Exchange[^]

                            Quote:

                            CPOL is not an open source license according to the OSI definition. It has a clause which does not allow it to be used for any purpose as mandated by the GPL or MIT license:

                            Quote:

                            You agree not to use the Work for illegal, immoral or improper purposes, or on pages containing illegal, immoral or improper material.

                            If that's true it makes CPOL more restrictive than BSD, can anybody weigh in on this? Was this intentional?

                            Greg UtasG Offline
                            Greg UtasG Offline
                            Greg Utas
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #22

                            I wonder how immoral or improper would end getting defined in court. They're not the same as illegal.

                            Robust Services Core | Software Techniques for Lemmings | Articles
                            The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.

                            <p><a href="https://github.com/GregUtas/robust-services-core/blob/master/README.md">Robust Services Core</a>
                            <em>The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.</em></p>

                            1 Reply Last reply
                            0
                            • J Jorgen Andersson

                              I think the best person to answer that is @chris-maunder

                              Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello Never stop dreaming - Freddie Kruger

                              M Offline
                              M Offline
                              Member_14857213
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #23

                              Yes, it would be nice to have an official response. As you might imagine it's quite a huge risk to leave this sort of thing up to chance. I hope the SE post is incorrect. Maybe adding something to the license like the DUMB decoder did might help reassure people that CPOL can mix with GNU GPL, if it wasn't CPOL's intent to add breaking clauses: dumb/LICENSE at 396caa4d31859045ccb5ef943fd430ca4026cce8 · kode54/dumb · GitHub[^] Sadly there's not much room for "creativity" when it comes to compatibility with viral licenses. I can't afford the lawyers and I wouldn't know one who could answer this anyway (no precedent anywhere).

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • M Member_14857213

                                Just FYI, from what I read it seems like CPOL isn't compatible with GNU GPL: - So if you have a GNU GPL dependency it might be illegal to use a CPOL license on your project, - and it might be illegal for anyone who uses a (viral) GNU GPL dependency to use your work under a CPOL license. license compatibility - Can I use CodeProject code in a GPL project? - Open Source Stack Exchange[^]

                                Quote:

                                CPOL is not an open source license according to the OSI definition. It has a clause which does not allow it to be used for any purpose as mandated by the GPL or MIT license:

                                Quote:

                                You agree not to use the Work for illegal, immoral or improper purposes, or on pages containing illegal, immoral or improper material.

                                If that's true it makes CPOL more restrictive than BSD, can anybody weigh in on this? Was this intentional?

                                C Offline
                                C Offline
                                Chris Maunder
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #24

                                Yes, it was intentional. When the CPOL was created the legal climate around software was vague and, frankly, dangerous for developers. We were aware of cases against software developers who had given away code without any self-protection and we determined that it would be a disservice to our members not to offer them protection (and choice, obviously) Our lawyers highlighted one case in particular where a developer was sued because their code was used for malicious purposes. This motivated us to put the "don't be bad" clause. Further, things like being clear about the jurisdiction can be the difference between a developer getting treated fairly and a developer getting hung drawn and quartered. We're not a fan of GPL because while it's "open and free" in the sense you get to see the code and you can use it how you wish, you're not actually free to make proprietary extensions of the code. You add your own cleverness, do some amazing work using the code, and you MUST open it up to the world. That's not how the world works. So the CPOL is about 1. Protecting our members who share code by buttoning down the many legal agreements that were out there 2. Ensuring other developers can use our members' code freely, and to innovate with that code commercially 3. To ensure the code was open, in the sense that the source code must be available to read

                                cheers Chris Maunder

                                M 1 Reply Last reply
                                0
                                • C Chris Maunder

                                  Yes, it was intentional. When the CPOL was created the legal climate around software was vague and, frankly, dangerous for developers. We were aware of cases against software developers who had given away code without any self-protection and we determined that it would be a disservice to our members not to offer them protection (and choice, obviously) Our lawyers highlighted one case in particular where a developer was sued because their code was used for malicious purposes. This motivated us to put the "don't be bad" clause. Further, things like being clear about the jurisdiction can be the difference between a developer getting treated fairly and a developer getting hung drawn and quartered. We're not a fan of GPL because while it's "open and free" in the sense you get to see the code and you can use it how you wish, you're not actually free to make proprietary extensions of the code. You add your own cleverness, do some amazing work using the code, and you MUST open it up to the world. That's not how the world works. So the CPOL is about 1. Protecting our members who share code by buttoning down the many legal agreements that were out there 2. Ensuring other developers can use our members' code freely, and to innovate with that code commercially 3. To ensure the code was open, in the sense that the source code must be available to read

                                  cheers Chris Maunder

                                  M Offline
                                  M Offline
                                  Member_14857213
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #25

                                  I understand, thanks for the response!

                                  1 Reply Last reply
                                  0
                                  • L Lost User

                                    Yeah, I need to decode Punycode in a project. So I find myself reading the RFC[^]. Oh look, there is a sample encoder/decoder right there in the RFC! It's my lucky day. But wait... LibIDN[^] has a verbatim copy of this code with almost no changes with the GNU license slapped onto it. But wait... the RFC is also 'Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2003). All Rights Reserved.' at the bottom which isn't mentioned anywhere on the GNU provided code. I can infer that I am not the first person to ask about this... the GNU header says the following:

                                    /*
                                    * This file is derived from RFC 3492bis written by Adam M. Costello,
                                    * downloaded from http://www.nicemice.net/idn/punycode-spec.gz on
                                    * 2015-03-02 with SHA1 a966a8017f6be579d74a50a226accc7607c40133, a
                                    * copy of which is stored in the GNU Libidn version controlled
                                    * repository under doc/specification/punycode-spec.gz.

                                    This is legal speak for 'We took this from a work in the public domain'. This is like following a spider web... let's keep following the threads. So let's check the original licence at http://www.nicemice.net/idn/punycode-spec.gz[^]

                                    B. Disclaimer and license

                                    Regarding this entire document or any portion of it (including
                                    the pseudocode and C code), the author makes no guarantees and
                                    is not responsible for any damage resulting from its use.  **The
                                    author grants irrevocable permission to anyone to use, modify,
                                    and distribute it in any way that does not diminish the rights**
                                    of anyone else to use, modify, and distribute it, provided that
                                    redistributed derivative works do not contain misleading author or
                                    version information.  Derivative works need not be licensed under
                                    similar terms.
                                    

                                    So without being a lawyer I interpret this as a guy named Adam wrote the Punycode RFC and put it into the public domain. Then the 'The Internet Society' slapped a copyright on the code. Then someone working on LibIDN copied the code and slapped a third lice

                                    L Offline
                                    L Offline
                                    Lost User
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #26

                                    I avoid anything longer than a page; ergo, I use no "open source" code.

                                    It was only in wine that he laid down no limit for himself, but he did not allow himself to be confused by it. ― Confucian Analects: Rules of Confucius about his food

                                    1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • L Lost User

                                      Yeah, I need to decode Punycode in a project. So I find myself reading the RFC[^]. Oh look, there is a sample encoder/decoder right there in the RFC! It's my lucky day. But wait... LibIDN[^] has a verbatim copy of this code with almost no changes with the GNU license slapped onto it. But wait... the RFC is also 'Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2003). All Rights Reserved.' at the bottom which isn't mentioned anywhere on the GNU provided code. I can infer that I am not the first person to ask about this... the GNU header says the following:

                                      /*
                                      * This file is derived from RFC 3492bis written by Adam M. Costello,
                                      * downloaded from http://www.nicemice.net/idn/punycode-spec.gz on
                                      * 2015-03-02 with SHA1 a966a8017f6be579d74a50a226accc7607c40133, a
                                      * copy of which is stored in the GNU Libidn version controlled
                                      * repository under doc/specification/punycode-spec.gz.

                                      This is legal speak for 'We took this from a work in the public domain'. This is like following a spider web... let's keep following the threads. So let's check the original licence at http://www.nicemice.net/idn/punycode-spec.gz[^]

                                      B. Disclaimer and license

                                      Regarding this entire document or any portion of it (including
                                      the pseudocode and C code), the author makes no guarantees and
                                      is not responsible for any damage resulting from its use.  **The
                                      author grants irrevocable permission to anyone to use, modify,
                                      and distribute it in any way that does not diminish the rights**
                                      of anyone else to use, modify, and distribute it, provided that
                                      redistributed derivative works do not contain misleading author or
                                      version information.  Derivative works need not be licensed under
                                      similar terms.
                                      

                                      So without being a lawyer I interpret this as a guy named Adam wrote the Punycode RFC and put it into the public domain. Then the 'The Internet Society' slapped a copyright on the code. Then someone working on LibIDN copied the code and slapped a third lice

                                      K Offline
                                      K Offline
                                      KateAshman
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #27

                                      I used to do R&D and some consultancy for a small firm, mostly for idiot bosses that didn't understand anything beyond billing people. One time, my boss handed me a "ready-to-go" project from "a really disruptive young developer" with the intent of having me do some minor visual tweaks and general QA. The project consisted out of a painstaking manual recreation of an existing proprietary UI, some GPL-3 source code, and 1 major project under a very dubious "you now owe us 10.000" custom license. My boss eluded that "he gave the developer a picture of the original software, so he would know what to build" and basically considered the entire thing a new and original work. Because he had asked a guy to build it for him. The stupidity of some people. :|

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