Section 117 of the Copyright Act allows the copying of a computer program "as an essential step in the utilization of the computer program." That doesn't mean that one cannot contract that right away. I would not suggest that any open source license do so. But an open source license can -- unless I'm misreading the OSD -- provide that anyone who makes such copies and distributes them provide access to the source code. And such a contract is NOT against the Copyright Act.
As I suggested earlier, I honestly don't much care whether someone makes a copy of an open source program. What many open source software owners care about is when they create derivative works, use those derivative works to make money by selling the *use* of the program (perhaps by providing an Internet service), and then not return the source code so that everyone else can benefit from those modifications. Legally, I can prevent that result through contract, and section 117 of the Copyright Act doesn't prevent me from doing so. /Larry Rosen > -----Original Message----- > From: Ken Arromdee [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] > Sent: Friday, August 02, 2002 12:59 PM > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: RE: OSL Version 1.0 dated 8/2/2002 > > > On Fri, 2 Aug 2002, Lawrence E. Rosen wrote: > > > Someone could refuse to accept your license (thus also > > > refusing to accept your definition of distribution). If he > > > refuses to accept your license, he could then Externally > > > Deploy the code without being bound by the license. This > > > provision accomplishes little. > > Are you suggesting that the following provision in the OSL > won't work > > to prevent the copying that is essential for use of a > software program? > > 8. Acceptance and Termination. Nothing else but this > > License (or another written agreement between Licensor > > and You) grants You permission to create Derivative > > Works based upon the Original Work, and any attempt > > to do so except under the terms of this License > > (or another written agreement between Licensor and > > You) is expressly prohibited by U.S. copyright law, > > the equivalent laws of other countries, and by > > international treaty. Therefore, by exercising any > > of the rights granted to You in Section 1 herein, > > You indicate Your acceptance of this License and all > > of its terms and conditions. This license shall > > terminate immediately upon Your failure to honor > > the proviso in Section 1(c) herein. > > Yes, I'm suggesting exactly that. Copying of the program > into memory in order to run it is permitted by law. The user > may therefore do so without accepting the license. The > clause above says you can't make derivative works without > accepting the license, not that you can't make copies. > > (And even if you argue that copies are derivative > works--IANAL, but I don't know if you could get away with > that--that would simply mean that that clause is wrong. > Section 117 of the US copyright law lets you copy the program > into memory in order to use it. If you're going to consider > that a derivative work, then yes, something else *does* let > you make derivative works.) > > -- > license-discuss archive is at http://crynwr.com/cgi-bin/ezmlm-cgi?3 > -- license-discuss archive is at http://crynwr.com/cgi-bin/ezmlm-cgi?3
