Python 2.5 licensing: stop this change

[Steve Holden]

As the only director of the Python Software Foundation to vote against a
recent Board motion to implement the change in licensing terms described in

http://pyfound.blogspot.com/2006/04/python-25-licensing-change.html

I would like to place on record my protest against this change. I think
it will harm the Python language and ultimately be counter-productive,
reducing the user base and discouraging open source programmers from
contributing to the code base.

If you disagree with this proposed change it's not too late to do
something about it. If this change goes ahead it will be the end of
Python as we know it.

regards
Steve

 

[ajones]

I say good riddence. Python's success has always been on its merits as
an open source application platform. Corprate usage has always been
relatively insignificant, and I suspect that many companies are
overrepresenting the level of dependance they have on python in an
attempt to steer their competitors into just this kind of open source
license trap.

I am all for this change. It is about time that free as in beer became
a double entendre for python.

 

[Kay Schluehr]

As the only director of the Python Software Foundation to vote against a
recent Board motion to implement the change in licensing terms described in

http://pyfound.blogspot.com/2006/04/python-25-licensing-change.html

I would like to place on record my protest against this change. I think
it will harm the Python language and ultimately be counter-productive,
reducing the user base and discouraging open source programmers from
contributing to the code base.

If you disagree with this proposed change it's not too late to do
something about it. If this change goes ahead it will be the end of
Python as we know it.

regards
Steve

I'm +1 on the new license because I want to spend good money for good
products.

My own take is more close to Xah Lees: lets be ultimately responsible
and found an insurance for all kind of damages related to Python script
usages. Part of the money the PSF earns for insurance fees could be
donated to a charitable foundation that cares for indian children that
suffer from snake bites.

 

[Fuzzyman]

As the only director of the Python Software Foundation to vote against a
recent Board motion to implement the change in licensing terms described in

http://pyfound.blogspot.com/2006/04/python-25-licensing-change.html

I would like to place on record my protest against this change. I think
it will harm the Python language and ultimately be counter-productive,
reducing the user base and discouraging open source programmers from
contributing to the code base.

If you disagree with this proposed change it's not too late to do
something about it. If this change goes ahead it will be the end of
Python as we know it.

Can I ask for clarification. The charge applies to any commercial use
of a derivative work based on the Python source code ?

Normal applications that use Python, including bunding the standard
CPython as an executable, using tools like py2exe, won't be covered.
Right ?

Does this cover commercial applications that embed the Python
interpreter ? (Looks like it will)

All the best,

Fuzzyman
http://www.voidspace.org.uk/python/index.shtml

 

[Fuzzyman]

Can I ask for clarification. The charge applies to any commercial use
of a derivative work based on the Python source code ?

Normal applications that use Python, including bunding the standard
CPython as an executable, using tools like py2exe, won't be covered.
Right ?

Does this cover commercial applications that embed the Python
interpreter ? (Looks like it will)

Hmmm... after due consideration (and reading the announcmement
properly), I support this license change in full.

Nice one Steve.

Fuzzy

 

[Caleb Hattingh]

Steve

I agree with you. If my vote means anything, I vote against it.

I guess what would happen is that many people will sit on 2.4 for a lot
longer than expected, or widespread interest in other implementations
(fork?) suddenly take off

I would pretty much have to remain with 2.4 at work - we have a
draconian IT software management policy that would prevent me getting
approval for a commercial licence for python for at least the better
part of a year, and this cycle would be repeated for every upgrade (the
hold-ups involve budgets, cost-centres and red tape). This is why I
use as much free software as possible.

Regards
Caleb

 

[Caleb Hattingh]

WAIT-

Did I just get caught by an April Fools Joke?

I have a nasty feeling about this )

C

 

[Piet van Oostrum]

F> Can I ask for clarification. The charge applies to any commercial use
F> of a derivative work based on the Python source code ?

F> Normal applications that use Python, including bunding the standard
F> CPython as an executable, using tools like py2exe, won't be covered.
F> Right ?

As I understand it, distributing Python is also covered. For a commercial
vendor $1.25 is peanuts, but for the PSA it is a significant amount (think
about all the Mac OSX copies if Apple decides to switch to 2.5).

 

[Ivan Herman]

I would certainly look at *all details* of the announcement, including
the second line from the top which gives the date

Ivan

 

[bearophileHUGS]

Ivan Herman>I would certainly look at *all details* of the
announcement,<

Aww, but I liked the idea of copying Perl 6 REs, and porting python to
the toy CPU
(But making strings mutable sounds too much strange).

Bye and thank you,
bearophile

 

[Kent Johnson]

Aww, but I liked the idea of copying Perl 6 REs, and porting python to
the toy CPU

I think if PSF is going to support porting of Python to "toy" CPUs then
the Digi-Comp should be the first target. This will breathe new life
into these toys which for years have been relegated to the backs of
closets and dusty attics. Having a modern programming language available
will bring them out of the dark ages of counters and logic tables and
make them useful for such purposes as web servers and biological
research. And for the developers or others who need to target this
platform, it is again in production.
http://paperforest.blogspot.com/2006/02/digi-comp-1.html

Kent

 

[garylinux]

Look at the date.
Worry about this if it is still around tomarrow

 

[Grant Edwards]

As the only director of the Python Software Foundation to vote against a
recent Board motion to implement the change in licensing terms described in

http://pyfound.blogspot.com/2006/04/python-25-licensing-change.html

Good one Steve.

I particularly liked the Comments section.

 

[Grant Edwards]

As I understand it, distributing Python is also covered. For a commercial
vendor $1.25 is peanuts, but for the PSA it is a significant amount (think
about all the Mac OSX copies if Apple decides to switch to 2.5).

I just found last night that my spankin' new Thinkpad came with
Python 2.2 pre-installed underneath an "IBMTOOLS" directory on
the C: drive.

Don't let Lenovo slide by without paying...

 

[Roy Smith]

As the only director of the Python Software Foundation to vote against a
recent Board motion to implement the change in licensing terms described in

http://pyfound.blogspot.com/2006/04/python-25-licensing-change.html

I would like to place on record my protest against this change. I think
it will harm the Python language and ultimately be counter-productive,
reducing the user base and discouraging open source programmers from
contributing to the code base.

If you disagree with this proposed change it's not too late to do
something about it. If this change goes ahead it will be the end of
Python as we know it.

regards
Steve

Absolutely agree. This is a disaster. Specifying the use of $US will shut
out our friends who use quatloos or gold pressed latinum for currency. Bad
idea.

 

[reedobrien]

That isn't in the published 2.5 License.

http://docs.python.org/dev/ref/node110.html

Thanks for the scare..

~r

 

[Martin P. Hellwig]

Fuzzyman wrote:
From the site:
"Advanced Program for Research In Licensing, whose First Object-Oriented
License"

string = "Advanced Program for Research In Licensing, whose First
Object-Oriented License"
for letter in string:
if ord(letter) in range(65,91):
print(letter),

 

[EP]

Hmmm... after due consideration (and reading the announcmement
properly), I support this license change in full.

If I could read past the first paragraph do you think I would really
hang onto this newsgroup asking stupid questions?!

The personal harm caused readers of this announcement should entitle
each reader to a free beer (or for those with bad hearts, a
nitroglycerin pill) at the expense of the perpetrator - though I imagine
the PSF team of lawyers retained for license enforcement may take up the
case on his side - money talks.


- As an aside, I should mention that I have countered the announced
licensing change with a patent application for the use of 3, 4, or 5
spaces as an indent for purposes of establishing a code block. I have
written a tidy little program that will count indent spaces in all
Python programs and expect to negotiate royalty settlements on a per
space basis ($.0001 per space proposed). Anyone who prefers to avoid a
call from my legal team can simply send me their source code for royalty
calculation, and provide a credit card or bank account number. Thanks.

EP

 

[walterbyrd]

Is this an April fool's joke?

Please post a link to the original article. Not just a post to a blog.

 

[Grant Edwards]

Is this an April fool's joke?

Did you read the blog entry?