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by nucleardog 737 days ago
> Licensing something under the GPL doesn't work like this.

Sure it does! The GPL covers this exact scenario.

Section 7 enumerates the additional restrictions you may include alongside the license which will apply to any further distribution. Those are mostly around indemnification, trademarks, etc.

It explicitly says all other non-permissive additions are considered further restrictions and if the program says it is covered by GPL you may remove those terms.

(There’s also section 10, but we don’t need it.)

Since the README says this is “under GPL license for individuals”, and the GPL license says I can remove those terms… without even getting really far into the mud here, I can download a copy of the software, strip those restrictions, and repost it under the GPL sans restrictions for anyone to use.

That all said… it will probably have most of the intended effect. Individuals won’t care about the license much (may limit outside contributors), but no company is going to touch this with a ten foot pole with a hacked up GPL on it, >100 employees or otherwise.

1 comments

Except Section 7 has this embedded in it:

> When you convey a copy of a covered work, you may at your option remove any additional permissions from that copy, or from any part of it. (Additional permissions may be written to require their own removal in certain cases when you modify the work.) You may place additional permissions on material, added by you to a covered work, for which you have or can give appropriate copyright permission.

So I've forked it, I'm less then 100 employees or 1000 invocations and ripped their clause out. Go forth and use as much as you want!

GPL has a ton of clauses that appear to pretty much prevent these shenanigans. Explains why I can't recall any Enterprise backed software like this under GPL.

Yes I believe that was the whole point of my comment. The third paragraph covers this.

The second to last makes the same as your second to last.

So no except… we’re in agreement here.