niess/python-appimage

License question

pombredanne opened this issue · 5 comments

pombredanne commented

Hi!
Thanks for this project. We are considering using this as a based for AppImages for https://github.com/nexB/scancode-toolkit and a few other FOSS projects and I have a licensing question:

Your project code here is GPL-licensed alright, but do you consider the generated AppImages to be also subject to the GPL?
@JonoYang FYI

niess commented

Hello,

thank you for raising this point. I didn't think about it so far. Indeed, one has to distinguish

  • A: the python-appimage application / Python package,
  • B: the produced ManyLinux Python AppImages (i.e. using the --manylinux option).
  • C: the produced Python based applications (i.e. using the --app option).

My, intent was to GPL only A. My understanding is that B and C depend on their software content. Thus, I would say that B is PSF licensed, and that C (which builds over B) should conform at least to PSF, as well as to any added software.

Now, there is some complication because A actually adds a few hooks to vanilla CPython, the like sitecustomize.py. Thus, there might be some ambiguity at that level. Yet, my intent is that B should still be PSF licensed.

Does this make sense?

pombredanne commented

@niess Thank you ++ for the detailed and clear explanation!
You wrote:

Now, there is some complication because A actually adds a few hooks to vanilla CPython, the like sitecustomize.py. Thus, there might be some ambiguity at that level. Yet, my intent is that B should still be PSF licensed.

For sake of clarity, it would be awesome if these few hooks would be also PSF-licensed, so that things are 100% clear.

niess commented

@pombredanne,

I have updated the license. In order to keep things simple, the files that get bundled in the AppImage (located under python_appimage/data) are now explicitly MIT licensed. Thus, the resulting AppImage should be GPL free (mostly PSF, except for AppImage-specific hooks &metadata that are MIT).

I also updated the README accordingly.

Does this work?

  • 🚀1
pombredanne commented

@niess you rock! Thank you ++ and happy new year! 🎉

niess commented

Happy new year :)

You're welcome.

Then, I am closing this.