Re: [Sheflug] how to release something under the GPL

[Neil R Porter <n.r.porter [at] xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Fri, 2002-11-29 at 22:15, Chris J wrote:
> > One small thing (and academic really as I don't foresee this situation
> > at all!) but after reading the
> > http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-howto.html I notice that I write
> > something like Copyright 2002 Neil R Porter first and foremost.  Now, if
> > I release this code under the GPL, can I revoke it?  I mean, if I have
> > written at the top of every piece of code Copyright 2002 Neil R Porter,
> > then I still presumably have more 'rights' than others?  Doesn't seem
> > right somehow.  Is my interpretation incorrect?
> > 
> If you really do not care what happens to your code, then release it
> public domain ... :) Depends how much control you want to retain and how
> restrictive you want it to be on the end user (in this case the BSD license
> is less restrictive for the end user).

Well, I kind of do care that if anyone does modify my work (to make it
more useful, add featues, whatever) that they can't just then sell it as
their own, so Public Domain is out.  I don't want to make money out of
it (well, apart from any support for setting it up on a server or
integrating it into a website or something obvious like that!).  I think
I do want it GPL so it can 'live', and potentially grow a bit beyond
what I can do alone.  

I was just thinking outloud I suppose.  What if I wanted to drop the GPL
one day?  I mean, suppose I am the _only_ person who has contributed to
it and I decide that I want to restrict the source code.  Can I
relinquish the GPL?  As I say, this is just academic.

Also, when I do release it under the GPL I know for a fact of a couple
of people who are waiting to use some of the code for their websites. 
Can I force them to show the GPL link at the bottom as you sometimes see
on things like php-nuke?

Also, and more importantly imo, if they subsequently modify the code and
still run it on their webserver but do not release their mods are they
breaking the GPL?  I know they aren't strictly distributing it, but they
kind of are?  hmmmm a tangled web.

Thanks for the info again

I'd better get commenting my code then, might save a few blushes ;)

Neil

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