Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

OSI Hopes To Decrease Number of Licenses

Posted by timothy on from the but-licenses-are-art-in-themselves dept.

Noksagt writes "Various outlets report that the OSI may cut down the increasing number of Open Source licenses. Right now there are about 50 approved licenses; incompatible licenses confuse and impede developers and end users alike. The OSDL has been pushing hard for this at LinuxWorld. Sam Greenblatt, a member of the OSDL board, said 'Eventually there should be three licenses: The GPL, a commercial version of the GPL, and, of course, there will be the BSD because you can't rid of it.'"

10 of 541 comments (clear)

  1. Ein Volk by pair-a-noyd · · Score: 5, Funny

    Ein License

  2. Cant get rid of BSD by OneArmedMan · · Score: 2, Funny

    Unless of course, it dies!

  3. Because you can't get rid of it? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Why is the GPL on this list? It's a proprietary license.

    (ducks)

  4. Ah, standards. by Tackhead · · Score: 4, Funny
    > Right now there are about 50 approved licenses; incompatible licenses confuse and impede developers and end users alike.

    But that's what's so wonderful about standards. There are so many to choose from. Besides, if you really have a problem with a certain license, you should have the right to view, modifiy, and release your own license based on the work of those who've written licenses before you.

    Join us now and share the licenses!
    You'll be free, lawyers, you'll be free!
    You'll be free, lawyers, you'll be free!

    Lobbyists get piles of money,
    That is true, lawyers, that is true.
    But they cannot help their neighbors;
    That's not good, lawyers, that's not good.

    When we have enough licenses
    At our call, lawyers, at our call,
    We'll throw out that dirty li*cough*software,
    Ever more, lawyers, ever more.

    Sorry, RMS, I had to. The muse knows what it wants, even if it wants to give me a first-class ticket to hell with window seating.

  5. We African Greys... by African+Grey · · Score: 5, Funny

    prefer the BSD license. It's not that we don't want to publish the changes we make to source code, but a lot of parrots don't have decent net access, especially in Africa. IP over avian carrier just isn't very fast, and source is a lot bigger than binaries. If you humans would get your act together and bring some kind of decent connectivity to the jungles, you'd be able to see our coding prowess for yourselves!

  6. Someone set us up the optimist. by argent · · Score: 2, Funny

    This is supposed to be funny, right?

  7. RMS is going up in the world by Hope+Thelps · · Score: 2, Funny
    From one of the articles:
    "God created GPL for a reason," Swainson said in a presentation at LinuxWorld, claiming that it is the best license around.
    Sounds like Saint Ignucius got a promotion.
    --
    To summarise the summary of the summary: people are a problem. ~ h2g2
  8. More proof... by eno2001 · · Score: 2, Funny

    ...that BSD is NOT dying: "You can't get rid of it" RE the license. Hahaha... laugh it's funny! ;P

    --
    -"...bad old ideas look confusingly fresh when they are packaged as technology" - Jaron Lanier (Digital Maoism on Edge.o
  9. Wait this sounds like... by xgamer04 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Three Licenses for the GNU-kings under the sky,
    Seven for the Corporate-lords in their halls of stone,
    Nine for Hacker Men doomed to die,
    One for Bruce Perens and Eric Raymond on their dark throne.
    In the Land of CVS where the Versions lie.
    One License to rule them all, One License to find them,
    One License to bring them all and in the darkness bind() them.
    In the Land of CVS where the Versions lie.

    Sorry, had to be done. :)

    --
    When you look at the state of the world, how can you not become a radical, liberal anarchist?
  10. Re:How about LGPL? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    iji iji iji iji iji iji jtiji iji iji iji iji iji
    iji iji iji iji iji ijjDMNQtiji iji iji iji iji ij
    iji iji iji iji iji cXMNMNMNQjiji iji iji iji iji
    iji iji iji iji ijcSMNMNMNMNHJiji iji iji ij iji ij
    iji iji iji iji iSWMNMNMNMHJiji iji iji ij iji iji
    iji iji iji iji6WMNMNMNMNYiji iji Jciji iji iji ij
    iji iji iji i5WMNMNMNMN5iji iji JHMNSc iji iji iji
    iji iji iji5NMNMNMNMW5iji iji JHMNMN MWSiji iji iji
    iji iji ijcXMNMNMNMNNYiji ijtKMNMN MNMNMW6iji iji i
    iji iji iji jDMNMNMNMNHJijtQMNMN MNMNMNMNMW5iji iji
    iji itciji iji QMNMNMNMNKDMNMN MNMNQWMNMNMNMN5iji i
    ijitKMWSiji iji jQMNSIEGMNMN MNMNQtijSWMNMNMNMNYiji
    itQMNMNMW6iji iji tKMNMNMN MNMNKtiji icSMNMNMNMNHJi
    iJHMNHEILMW6iji ijcSMNMN MNMNMNDjiji ijicXMNMNMNN5i
    ijiYNMNMNMNMN5ijiMNMDr SKWIDNMNMNDciji ijicDMNW6iji
    iji i5NMNMNMNMNSWMNM MNMNHNMNMNMNMNXciji iji 5iji i
    iji iji5WMNMNMNMNM MNMNN5ij5NMNMNMNMNSciji iji iji
    iji iji i6WMNMNM MNMNW5iji ij6WMHEILNMWSiji iji iji
    iji iji ijiSWM MNMNW6iji iji tKMNMNMNMNXciji iji ij
    iji iji iji cSMNWSiji iji tQMNMNMNMNDjiji iji iji
    iji iji ij iji c6ciji iji QMNMNMNMNQjiji iji iji ij
    iji iji iji iji iji ijjDMHITLERNQtiji iji iji iji
    iji ij iji iji iji ijcXMNMNMNMNKtiji iji iji iji ij
    iji iji iji iji iji jQMNMNMNHJiji iji iji iji iji
    ij iji iji iji iji iji tKMNHJiji iji iji iji iji ij
    iji iji iji iji iji iji tYiji iji iji iji iji ij ij