[LAD] students and copyright

[Patrick Shirkey]

On 08/02/2009 08:22 PM, Arnout Engelen wrote:
> On Sun, Aug 02, 2009 at 02:20:15PM +0200, Ralf Mardorf wrote:
>    
>> Arnout Engelen wrote:
>>      
>>> If you don't have the copyright to a piece of code you wrote, for example
>>> because you wrote it for your employer, then this means you are *not allowed*
>>> to distribute this code. Not under the GPL, and not under whatever
>>> other license either.
>>>
>>> To distribute the code, you must either get the copyright on the work back,
>>> or get permission from the actual copyright holder (employer, institution) to
>>> do so.
>>>        
>> You misunderstood my broken English. GPL only allows a copyleft, that's
>> why no institute or professor can use GPL licensed code and take on the
>> copyright.
>>
>> I don't think any institute is allowed to take on a copyright by using GPL
>> licensed code.
>>      
>
> Example.
>
> Say I'm employed, and I'm working on some project for my employer. I download
> some GPL'ed code, and write some nontrivial additions to it.
>
> This now means the institution has the copyright on the code I wrote. If I'd
> want to distribute this software, I'd need 2 things:
> 1) distribute it under the GPL
> 2) ask my employer to either:
>    a) grant me my copyright back on the additions
>    b) give me permission to distribute the software under the GPL
>
> If I wouldn't do (1), I would violate the copyright of the original author of
> the GPL'ed code I download.
>
> If I wouldn't do (2), I would violate the copyright of my employer.
>
> In other words, if my employer doesn't give me permission to distribute the
> work I did for him, I cannot distribute it at all, regardless of the GPL.
> The instition is still bound by the GPL though, so they can't distribute the
> software under anything other than the GPL - but they can still choose not to
> distribute at all.
>
>    



They can also choose to only distribute privately and then they would 
only have to provide copies of the code to the users of the software if 
the user asks for the code.

Hence if none of the users ask for the code, they don't have to 
distribute it. Also, this is one point that has always struck me as odd 
but IIUC, the distributor doesn't have any obligation under the GPL-v2 
to distribute the code in any specific time frame.  The GPL-v3 might 
have added a clause for the time frame for distribution after a request 
is made.

IIUC, the time frame issue is resolved by the requestee making it clear 
that they will distribute a version of the code on their own or 
otherwise make it known that the original distributor is not keeping to 
the principals of the GPL by delaying release of the code after a 
request is made for it's release.

In other words, the aim of the game is to shame the player who tries to 
go against the principals of the GPL.

That, AFAICT, is the last resort of the GPL before a full scale legal 
attack is launched.

Effectively this works out to:

1: Play nice and keep everyone happy
2: Shame
3: Lawyers




Patrick Shirkey
Boost Hardware Ltd


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