Convincing Your Superiors to GPL the Code?

jakobgrimstveit asks: "At work I've been developing an intranet/extranet portal framework in PHP based on many other peoples work, including quite a few PEAR modules. I've always wanted to release the coding framework as GPL and publish it on SourceForge, and my boss has - impressively enough - not been too negative about this. This has been going around in the organization for quite a while now, and finally the reply from the company's president was (not surprisingly): 'Why should we do so?' I now have the task of writing a document listing the main reasons for GPLing the code, and this is where I turn to the highly competent Slashdot crowd: How do I convince my bosses to GPL the code I've written? I assume many other developers have the same problems trying to convince their bosses to open up their code."

Comments

Re:good luck

[chris_mahan]

There is an advantage to your competition using your code, especially if a lot of the competition is using your code. You will be seen as the de-facto standard settig body for the software, and that will attract good-will in the industry, allowing you to potentially hire their finest and brightest.

Also, bear in mind that this will give you an insight of how they run their business.

Finally, you could then turn around and sell them "SuperSoftware Enterprise Edition", since they alreay know and use and love SuperSoftware Standard.

Ultimately, though, your boss does not care unless the business makes moeny off it before year's end.

Remeber Google: If you want to build an $80B company in 6 years: Use linux and develop your own software.

Re:Tell them your reasons

[Marxist Hacker 42]

It's that second one that will convince your boss- but it needs rewording. Plugging into the Dogbert Buzzword Generator for a second, try:

"I wish to maximize my productivity by leveraging the efforts of the Open Source Development Community, thus getting us development resources at no extra cost to the company."