OddThinking

Dear Open Source Initiative volunteers,

I have browsed your large library of Open Source licenses.

We both know that that there are already too many different Open Source licenses to choose from.

Despite that, I want you to add a new one, because I couldn’t find one that really expressed what I really want for my WordPress plugins.

I realise I could get a lawyer to write a new one, and donate it to you but that sounds like too much work.

The license I want is probably most similar to the Artistic License, but not. Here’s what I want to say:

Open Source is very important: I want people to know that they can fix any bugs, if they need to and that they can enhance it, if they want to.

Attribution is very important: I want credit for the work I did, and I don’t want to be blamed for the work I didn’t do. The credits should clearly show what I contributed and what changes other people made. Obviously the normal “No warranty” provisos should apply.

My ongoing involvement is pretty important: I want to be informed about any changes that are made, and I demand the option to fold those changes back into the “main branch” that I maintain. Others can choose whether to directly share their changes with the world, but they have to share it with me, and give me the right to share them with others. If you really need to keep your changes closed, chat to me – I probably willing to offer an exception.

Longevity is important: Everything here is predicated on you being able to contact me, and me being willing to negotiate. When I die or fail to answer my emails for a six-week period, all the code becomes public domain. The copyright does not pass to my estate or get taken over by some hard-to-contact third-party.

Non-commerciality is negotiable: My code is being released free (as in beer). No-one else should be able to make money out of it without my permission. They can with my permission – but I might want to be cut in on the deal.

I can’t find a pre-prepared license with these attributes. Please do some lawyery expensive lawyery stuff to fix this… for free. I think that’s a fair price.