Re: [libreplanet-discuss] Gitlab and Gitorious (was Re: support me)

[Yoni Rabkin]

Mark Holmquist <mtraceur@member.fsf.org> writes:

> On Sat, Mar 07, 2015 at 09:26:04AM -0500, Richard Stallman wrote:
>> Copyleft is not a restriction.  It is a defense against restrictions
>> imposed by middlemen on the users.
>
> However short-sighted and basically utilitarian the quoted rationale for
> avoiding copyleft may be, I think it's impossible for copyleft not to
> be a restriction. If it did not restrict people from distributing under
> different licenses, it would no longer be called copyleft, it would just
> be called public domain.
>
> Now, you could definitely say that copyleft is not a restriction on the
> end user, but if you're looking to minimize the restrictions for *everyone*,
> including developers of derivatives or applications that use your code,
> then copyleft is not your license.

It's a matter of perspective.

To someone who wants proprietary software, copyleft is a restriction. To
someone who want freedom, copyleft is a protection.

To someone who wants proprietary software, lax licenses are an
opportunity. To someone who fears proprietary software, lax licenses are
a vulnerability.

-- 
   "Cut your own wood and it will warm you twice"