From f6ecf9180cbba0695f6675881fdb00d25a3a65ca Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Kat Walsh Date: Thu, 18 Dec 2014 00:56:55 -0800 Subject: [PATCH 1/4] Mention public domain in "no license" Some people who choose this option may really intend PD; mention that option and what to do --- no-license.md | 2 +- 1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-) diff --git a/no-license.md b/no-license.md index aeccd0d..1dbd540 100644 --- a/no-license.md +++ b/no-license.md @@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ title: No License You're under no obligation to choose a license and it's your right not to include one with your code or project. But please note that opting out of open source licenses doesn't mean you're opting out of copyright law. -You'll have to check with your own legal counsel regarding your particular project, but generally speaking, the absence of a license means that default copyright laws apply. This means that you retain all rights to your source code and that nobody else may reproduce, distribute, or create derivative works from your work. This might not be what you intend. +You'll have to check with your own legal counsel regarding your particular project, but generally speaking, the absence of a license means that default copyright laws apply. This means that you retain all rights to your source code and that nobody else may reproduce, distribute, or create derivative works from your work. This might not be what you intend. (If your intent is to release your code into the public domain, you must explicitly say this. You should use a public domain dedication such as CC0 or the Unlicense to let reusers know that it is freely reusable.) Even in the absence of a license file, you may grant some rights in cases where you publish your source code to a site that requires accepting terms of service. For example, if you publish your source code in a public repository on GitHub, you have accepted the [Terms of Service](https://help.github.com/articles/github-terms-of-service) which do allow other GitHub users some rights. Specifically, you allow others to view and fork your repository. From 123f66307ad3fcba539deb3521a0072b72d3ee1d Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Ben Lavender Date: Tue, 30 Dec 2014 16:48:03 -0600 Subject: [PATCH 2/4] Break down alternatives to no license into another paragraph --- no-license.md | 6 +++--- 1 file changed, 3 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-) diff --git a/no-license.md b/no-license.md index 1dbd540..b5f32f8 100644 --- a/no-license.md +++ b/no-license.md @@ -6,8 +6,8 @@ title: No License You're under no obligation to choose a license and it's your right not to include one with your code or project. But please note that opting out of open source licenses doesn't mean you're opting out of copyright law. -You'll have to check with your own legal counsel regarding your particular project, but generally speaking, the absence of a license means that default copyright laws apply. This means that you retain all rights to your source code and that nobody else may reproduce, distribute, or create derivative works from your work. This might not be what you intend. (If your intent is to release your code into the public domain, you must explicitly say this. You should use a public domain dedication such as CC0 or the Unlicense to let reusers know that it is freely reusable.) +You'll have to check with your own legal counsel regarding your particular project, but generally speaking, the absence of a license means that default copyright laws apply. This means that you retain all rights to your source code and that nobody else may reproduce, distribute, or create derivative works from your work. + +Disallowing use of your code might not be what you intend by "no license." If your goal is to explicitly opt-out of copyright protections, try a public domain dedication like the [Unlicense](/licenses/unlicense/) or [CC0](/licenses/cc0). An open-source license allows reuse of your code while maintaining copyright. If you want to share your work with others, you must opt into it. Even in the absence of a license file, you may grant some rights in cases where you publish your source code to a site that requires accepting terms of service. For example, if you publish your source code in a public repository on GitHub, you have accepted the [Terms of Service](https://help.github.com/articles/github-terms-of-service) which do allow other GitHub users some rights. Specifically, you allow others to view and fork your repository. - -If you want to share your work with others, please consider choosing an open source license. From 4b40ed20c4b331c8aacb53517f27a43294365d22 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Ben Lavender Date: Fri, 2 Jan 2015 10:01:26 -0600 Subject: [PATCH 3/4] Link back to the front page for folks who want to license --- no-license.md | 2 +- 1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-) diff --git a/no-license.md b/no-license.md index b5f32f8..8057b51 100644 --- a/no-license.md +++ b/no-license.md @@ -8,6 +8,6 @@ You're under no obligation to choose a license and it's your right not to includ You'll have to check with your own legal counsel regarding your particular project, but generally speaking, the absence of a license means that default copyright laws apply. This means that you retain all rights to your source code and that nobody else may reproduce, distribute, or create derivative works from your work. -Disallowing use of your code might not be what you intend by "no license." If your goal is to explicitly opt-out of copyright protections, try a public domain dedication like the [Unlicense](/licenses/unlicense/) or [CC0](/licenses/cc0). An open-source license allows reuse of your code while maintaining copyright. If you want to share your work with others, you must opt into it. +Disallowing use of your code might not be what you intend by "no license." If your goal is to explicitly opt-out of copyright protections, try a public domain dedication like the [Unlicense](/licenses/unlicense/) or [CC0](/licenses/cc0). Alternately, an [open-source license](/) allows reuse of your code while maintaining copyright. If you want to share your work with others, you must opt into it. Even in the absence of a license file, you may grant some rights in cases where you publish your source code to a site that requires accepting terms of service. For example, if you publish your source code in a public repository on GitHub, you have accepted the [Terms of Service](https://help.github.com/articles/github-terms-of-service) which do allow other GitHub users some rights. Specifically, you allow others to view and fork your repository. From 5661599970cd95ae338981164c32542ef9c432c2 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Ben Lavender Date: Fri, 2 Jan 2015 11:53:52 -0600 Subject: [PATCH 4/4] Reorder so that licenses come first. --- no-license.md | 2 +- 1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-) diff --git a/no-license.md b/no-license.md index 8057b51..298e7ae 100644 --- a/no-license.md +++ b/no-license.md @@ -8,6 +8,6 @@ You're under no obligation to choose a license and it's your right not to includ You'll have to check with your own legal counsel regarding your particular project, but generally speaking, the absence of a license means that default copyright laws apply. This means that you retain all rights to your source code and that nobody else may reproduce, distribute, or create derivative works from your work. -Disallowing use of your code might not be what you intend by "no license." If your goal is to explicitly opt-out of copyright protections, try a public domain dedication like the [Unlicense](/licenses/unlicense/) or [CC0](/licenses/cc0). Alternately, an [open-source license](/) allows reuse of your code while maintaining copyright. If you want to share your work with others, you must opt into it. +Disallowing use of your code might not be what you intend by "no license." An [open-source license](/) allows reuse of your code while maintaining copyright. If your goal is to explicitly opt-out of copyright protections, try a public domain dedication like the [Unlicense](/licenses/unlicense/) or [CC0](/licenses/cc0). If you want to share your work with others, you must opt into it. Even in the absence of a license file, you may grant some rights in cases where you publish your source code to a site that requires accepting terms of service. For example, if you publish your source code in a public repository on GitHub, you have accepted the [Terms of Service](https://help.github.com/articles/github-terms-of-service) which do allow other GitHub users some rights. Specifically, you allow others to view and fork your repository.