Essential Project Licensing FAQs

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jason.powell
Posts: 32
Joined: 04 Feb 2009, 15:01

Could I cause myself or my company a problem with legal compliance if I use your open source software?
We have licensed the Essential Project tools under the GNU General Public License (GPL), which means that anyone is free to use it as is, and also to make their own changes to it. If the Essential toolkit is used internally within an organization there is no obligation to release any of that organization’s changes.

Why have you opted to use the GNU General Public License (GPL) rather than any other open source license agreement?
The GNU General Public License (GPL) allows you to use and modify Essential within your organization but does not require you to release any of your changes, if you do not wish to. However, if you release the modified version to others outside of your organization then you must make your changes available to them, and attribute the original code to EAS Ltd, under the GNU GPL license. This is known as a reciprocal license, and we have opted for it to protect our product and ourselves. We did not want another company to take the tools of the Essential Project, make a few small changes and then market it as their own product without the benefit of it being open source.

The following is an extract from the GNU GPL FAQs:-
The GPL does not require you to release your modified version, or any part of it. You are free to make modifications and use them privately, without ever releasing them. This applies to organizations (including companies), too; an organization can make a modified version and use it internally without ever releasing it outside the organization.

But if you release the modified version to the public in some way, the GPL requires you to make the modified source code available to the program's users, under the GPL.
Thus, the GPL gives permission to release the modified program in certain ways, and not in other ways; but the decision of whether to release it is up to you.


If I plan to modify the Essential Project tools but only use it internally, is there a limit to how many copies I can make or who I can release it to?
No, as long as you are only using it internally there is no limit to the number of copies you can make. Likewise, you can release it to anyone within your organization for use within your organization. However, this does not apply to giving copies to contractors or consultants for use off-site. This would be classed as distribution and you would then need to release your modified code.

Please view the GNU GPL FAQs for further details.

Is making and using multiple copies within one organization or company “distribution”?
No, in that case the organization is just making the copies for itself. As a consequence, a company or other organization can develop a modified version and install that version through its own facilities, without giving the staff permission to release that modified version to outsiders.

However, when the organization transfers copies to other organizations or individuals, that is distribution. In particular, providing copies to contractors for use off-site is distribution.

Do I have to make any changes I have made public?
No, as long as you are only going to use the Essential Project tools internally within your organization you do not need to make any modifications public. However, we would love to see the Essential toolkit grow and expand from other people’s experiences. Releasing any changes you have made allows this to happen, and allows you to benefit from seeing the changes that others are making as well. The Essential Project has been established to facilitate this sharing; however, as long as your use is internal only, the choice is yours.
Essential Project Team
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