What makes a web application free software?
Um Zugang zu den Foren zu erhalten, müssen Sie angemeldet sein. Machen Sie das hier
|
Autor
|
Nachricht
|
|
vadania
Ort:
|
Donnerstag, 10. Januar 2008 08:39:34
What makes a web application free software?
I have read some comments (http://www.news.com/8301-13580_3-9820397-39.html) regarding the Afero GPL license and I have some trouble understanding a few bits. citation:
"The Affero GPL contains a provision specifically for situations when software it governs is accessible as a service over a network. Where the GPL treats that situation as a private use of software, permitting the user to keep any changes private, the Affero GPL lets programmers include a requirement that users of the software must be able to download it when it's offered as a network service."
0) I seem to misunderstand the meaning of the Afero GPL: does GPL cover software in general and Afero GPL refers to running copies of that software?
Let's take the case of WordPress (WordPress.org) which is a web application making blogging easier for everyone. It is covered by GPL.
1) if I make any changes to WordPress source (correct bugs, improve performance) including changes that make my copy incompatible with most other copies of WordPress and I do not distribute the modified code (in binary or source code form) to anyone, that does not mean that I misuse the GPL license, am I right?
2) What would free software mean from the point of the web user? How can we warrant his freedom? Should we require all free software services to allow easy to use exporting tools for their user's data?
In my view exporting tools are a way to lock in users, since moving, for example 1000 blog posts and 10000 comments, is not that trivial to me and can not be done by Copy&Paste. So does Afero provide a way to require web application providers to allow users access their data stored on the provider's network? What would be your the legal stand in this case?
Say Yahoo! replaces their webmail software with some software under GPL.
If they allow me to download the source code of their running copy, but that copy prevents exporting of user data is that still free software? Or could that be considered "anticompetitive practices" and people could take that way in a trial? What if their terms of service mention that by using their service you accept that you will never try to export your data?
|
|
guido
Ort:
|
Donnerstag, 10. Januar 2008 22:35:28
Re: What makes a web application free software?
Hello, unfortunately, I can not answer your questions. Have you read http://gplv3.fsf.org/agplv3-dd2-guide.html? I remember a discussion about the Affero licence in the discussion mailing list of FSFE. November 2007 looks quite promising... If your questions are not ansered there already, post your text there again. The mailing lists have much more traffic than this forum. Greetings, Guido
|
