Ask HN: Can someone explain the common open source licenses?

2 pointsdpearce13y ago4 comments

Could someone roughly explain the differences between the common open source licenses out there (Apache, GPL, MIT, etc.) and any restrictions they may have?

I'm not working on any specific project that would require professional legal advice. I just want a basic understanding of the differences between the most common licenses and how they can generally affect or restrict projects.

What is the most open and unrestricted license? What licenses have restrictions I should be aware of? etc. etc. Thanks

4 comments

mindcrime13y ago

It would take quite a bit of writing to do all of that. And there are some significant subtleties in terms of the differences between seemingly similar licenses.

What I'd recommend, is that you read the book Open Source Licensing[1] and / or the book Understanding Open Source and Free Software Licensing[2]. Both are freely available online.

[1]: http://www.rosenlaw.com/oslbook.htm

[2]: http://oreilly.com/openbook/osfreesoft/book/index.html

dpearceOP13y ago

Great answer, thanks.

skram13y ago

You might also want to check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_free_software_lic...

AjJi13y ago

Check out http://www.tldrlegal.com/ (Lookup software licenses summarized & explained in plain English.)

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