[postgis-users] PostGIS documentation license

[Stephen Woodbridge]

+1 with Regina.

This is exactly my experience. My clients have no issues contributing 
back because the cost of constantly merging their "private" code does 
not offset the value added by keeping it private. On the other hand they 
are VERY reluctant to integrate any GPL code base with their products 
because they do not want to risk polluting the code that is legitimately 
proprietary because it in inadvertently mixed in some GPL code.

A good example is mapserver.org that uses an MIT-X license and a huge 
part of the development effort is funded by commercial companies 
contracting to developers to add this or that feature to the base product.

I don't what to start a this or that is better war. These things tend to 
be very personal beliefs and there are many models and all seem to be 
working, I just think it is a shame the the ecosystem is broken into all 
these camps.

-Steve

On 7/27/2011 1:50 PM, Paragon Corporation wrote:
> Paolo,
>
> I think software is more valuable the more people are using it and stress
> testing it.  That said, I'm more concerned about people not using PostGIS
> because they fear they will have to release their proprietary source code,
> more than I am worried about people not giving back to the community. Even
> people who don't give back, find bugs and complain which makes the software
> stronger and more robust when we fix it.
>
> There are plenty of people producing proprietary software that have no
> qualms about giving their enhancements back to PostGIS/GEOS etc and in fact
> beg us to take them so they don't have to cut in there changes with each
> release.  We have several customers like that -- e.g. the tiger geocoder
> work we are doing, x3d export, the ability for shp2pgsql to be able to read
> raw dbf (with no shape), the ability to export .prj were all pieces of work
> we did as part of work we did for clients marketing closed source SaaS that
> relies on PostGIS.  They're willingness to give back these changes wouldn't
> have been any different if PostGIS were GPL or BSD because to them PostGIS
> is just a wheel in their armor like any other database software would be.
> However the fact that PostGIS is GPL does give some a pause for concern as
> to how they distribute it etc and their willingness to even use it since it
> does bring up the question of where their software begins and PostGIS ends.
> If you use Oracle, SQL Server etc, the fact there is a clear payment and
> exchange of goods makes it in some cases a safer choice if you are worried
> about protecting your intellectual property.
>
> Thanks,
> Regina
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: postgis-users-bounces at postgis.refractions.net
> [mailto:postgis-users-bounces at postgis.refractions.net] On Behalf Of Paolo
> Cavallini
> Sent: Wednesday, July 27, 2011 2:46 AM
> To: postgis-users at postgis.refractions.net
> Subject: Re: [postgis-users] PostGIS documentation license
>
> Il 26/07/2011 22:06, Paragon Corporation ha scritto:
>
>> Regarding GPL.   Mostly I just find the whole licensing confusing.  I
> don't
>> think I'm the only one who would be happier if PostGIS was under a BSD/MIT
>> or some other licensing.  Mostly just for the headache of arguing about
> what
>> you can and can't do with it for commercial purposes.
>
> For what is worth: I'm against it, as this would make it easy to use the
> code we
> developed in proprietary projects, returning nothing to the project.
> All the best.