Karsten M. Self wrote: > The attempt to key this to continued "use" rather than transfer has no > standing under copyright as previously stated.
Based on the discussion so far, everything seems to depend on whether the recipient has a license, or is an owner of a copy. I was hoping the OSD would reject the license, without needing such a long discussion. Guess not. Here is the improved version 2. The trick is to distribute the shareware as source only. In that case, in order to run it, it must be compiled, and (unless you are compiling and linking in memory), that creates a derivative work, a right reserved to the copyright owner. Then use the GPL method of forcing a license agreement without signing one. I don't think the limited evaluation period is an issue for OSD rejection or not. (I wrote the 30 day period into the license because that is common for shareware. This license version 2 doesn't have an evaluation period.) Here is version 2. (Clause 2 and 4 are the interesting parts. Parts are heavily borrowed from other licenses.) The one improvement needed is that someone could make a binary, pay the $20, and then users of that copy would not have to pay. (They accept the license only when they made a copy or derivative work.) There would have to be a copyleft clauses too, so that the license on the binary would be preserved. (I left that out for easier reading.) To head off OSD #7 objections, under this license "running" is not a right "attached to the program." If you own the copy, that right is supplied by 17 USC 117. If you accept the license, that right is supplied by paying the $20 fee. --------------------------------------------------------- Copyright (c) <year> <copyright holders> 1. You may copy and distribute verbatim copies of the Program's source code as you receive it, in any medium, provided that you conspicuously and appropriately publish on each copy an appropriate copyright notice and disclaimer of warranty; keep intact all the notices that refer to this License and to the absence of any warranty, and agree and comply with the terms of this license. You may charge a fee for the physical act of transferring a copy, and you may at your option offer warranty protection in exchange for a fee. 2. You may compile this into an executable form, or modify your copy or copies of the Program or any portion of it, thus forming a work based on the Program, and copy and distribute such modifications or work under the terms of Section 1 above. 3. You may not copy, modify, sublicense, or distribute the Program except as expressly provided under this License. Any attempt otherwise to copy, modify, sublicense or distribute the Program is void, and will automatically terminate your rights under this License. However, parties who have received copies, or rights, from you under this License will not have their licenses terminated so long as such parties remain in full compliance. 4. This software is licensed, not sold. If you wish to run the software after agreeing to this license, you must pay $20 to <copyright holder.> 5. You are not required to accept this License, since you have not signed it. However, nothing else grants you permission to modify or distribute the Program or its derivative works. These actions are prohibited by law if you do not accept this License. Therefore, by modifying or distributing the Program (or any work based on the Program), you indicate your acceptance of this License to do so, and all its terms and conditions for using, copying, distributing or modifying the Program or works based on it. THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE. -- license-discuss archive is at http://crynwr.com/cgi-bin/ezmlm-cgi?3