Open Source Software Law FROM THE PUBLISHER
This unique and comprehensive resource provides a broad introduction to the area of software licensing in the information age. The book helps professionals and students to understand the basic philosophy and key issues of open source software development and offers expert guidance on how to draft an open source license. Drawing on the author's legal and technical background, this invaluable reference explains the legal framework that has been developed to support the increasingly popular Internet-based open source and free software community. Open Source Software Law explores the formal and legal aspects of two revolutionary views of software development and distribution: that software should be offered to users with open access to the source code and that end users should be freely able to modify, copy, or redistribute the software they have legally acquired. The book examines an innovative legal response to the conflict between copyright law and digital technology, and includes an analysis of the legal regime that an increasing number of software developers have come to prefer when developing and distributing software on-line.
SYNOPSIS
Dixon, who is an attorney with the Department of Education, explains the ten articles of the open source definition, clarifies the principles of open source software development and licensing, and offers advice on drafting open source licenses. He demonstrates how the current default laws support and reinforce the fundamental appropriateness of using the open source business model in the context of software development, addresses the legality of binding licensees to software licenses that are posted on web sites, and outlines the rules of dual licensing schemes. The CD-ROM contains license templates as RTF files. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
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