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Questions tagged [source-code]

Source Code is a human-readable collection of instructions in a programming language used to produce a computer program.

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92 votes
2 answers
21k views

Why is CC BY-SA discouraged for code?

Everybody knows that you shouldn't use a CC BY-SA license on your code. Even the Creative Commons folk recommend against it. What I don't know or understand is why. I can't seem to find any ...
RubberDuck's user avatar
  • 5,556
9 votes
1 answer
2k views

Do I need to respect licences of dependencies of dependencies?

I'm using in my code dependencies managed by npm. For example I'm using uglify-js which is using BSD license (which doesn't require code disclosure). But this plugin uses as dependency (so to my ...
marverix's user avatar
  • 193
30 votes
3 answers
9k views

Do I have to offer the source of an AGPL (v3.0) licensed Web app even if I didn’t modify it?

The point of using the GNU Affero General Public License (Version 3) is that it allows "users who interact with the licensed software over a network to receive the source for that program" (FSF). ...
unor's user avatar
  • 5,700
17 votes
1 answer
2k views

Is there any way to assert that a source code correspond to a compiled code?

When using a program that was compiled from open source code by a 3rd party and not by yourself directly, how is it possible to check that the binary program is well built against an exact source code ...
Nicolas Massart's user avatar
15 votes
2 answers
3k views

Does "the GPL doesn't cover the output of a program" also apply if the output is source code?

As it is well known (see for example this question or this one), the GPL licenses do not cover the output of a GPL-licensed program. So, I could for example generate some pictures with a GPL-licensed ...
sebrockm's user avatar
  • 253
22 votes
3 answers
13k views

AGPLv3 source redistribution: when does it apply to my code for a server-side Java app using an AGPL-licensed library?

I have written a Java program designed to run server-side with a plain HTML web interface: My app is based based on Apache Tomcat and I wrote a bunch of servlets. I am reusing and I have integrated ...
Philippe Ombredanne's user avatar
11 votes
2 answers
881 views

What counts as adaptation for using code licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 in software licensed under GPLv3?

Since 2015-10-08, GPLv3 is listed as one-way compatible license for CC BY-SA 4.0: […] you may license your contributions to adaptations of BY-SA 4.0 materials under GPLv3, but you may not license ...
unor's user avatar
  • 5,700
6 votes
1 answer
1k views

Can I distribute non-GPL code that uses GPL code as long as I don't distribute myself that GPL code

I have some doubts about source code re-distribution and GPL I wrote DummyLib, a library that includes AmazingLib (third-party lib, released under GPL) and links against ProprietarySDK (no source, ...
arthur's user avatar
  • 69
4 votes
1 answer
2k views

Open Source projects with encryption keys

I currently have a project which I'm planning in the not too distant future to open source on GitHub. The question I have is regarding how open source projects are released if they have encryption ...
Boardy's user avatar
  • 171
6 votes
3 answers
778 views

How to deal with copy-left in source-code history prior open-sourcing?

Given the following situation: A software project is released as open-source under a non-invasive license (e.g., BSD 2/3 clause, Apache 2, ...). During the process, the entire Git repository is made ...
H L's user avatar
  • 61
5 votes
1 answer
2k views

Using a GPL V3 library in a Android app published on Google Play, do I need to release the application's source code?

I'm in a situation where I'm considering using a GPL V3 library in a module of an Android application. The application will be published to Google Play and will be available for free download. My ...
Mina Wissa's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
238 views

Is reverse-compiled assembly considered as a valid form of "source code" in GPLv2?

My project used and modified some code from project A licensed under GPLv2 written in C. Now I was wondering that if I release my compiled binary with its reverse-compiled assembly, is it GPLv2-...
lz96's user avatar
  • 179
13 votes
1 answer
3k views

Derived work of BSD licensed software, how do I indicate this?

I found a javascript module (file), which contains two functions, and I would like to modify it under the terms of its BSD license. I'm happy for the resulting source file to be declared derived work ...
Paolo's user avatar
  • 131
9 votes
1 answer
1k views

Who owns the copyright to code which the author was paid to write?

For example, the repository owner owns the app, publishes the partial source code, and creates few tasks supported by some bounty to write some new components (such as new functions, classes, etc.). ...
kenorb's user avatar
  • 1,101
8 votes
1 answer
3k views

MIT-licensed app without the source code

There is one very cool app on GitHub, under the MIT license. However, for some reason, the author has not published the source code, only binaries. Is it allowed under the MIT license to provide ...
john c. j.'s user avatar
8 votes
1 answer
4k views

Can I sell UNMODIFIED Open source software without providing the actual source code?

Since everyone can sell open source software, modified or unmodified, at any price, under GPL and MPL as long as I know, can I do it without providing the source code since the recipients are just &...
jayjay19's user avatar
  • 101
8 votes
2 answers
3k views

Can I use source code licensed under CC-BY-SA for commercial closed source project?

I want to use some source code under CC-BY-SA for my company's project. That project is commercial and closed source code. I want our project not to have obligation to release the source code. Is this ...
Lee Victor's user avatar
7 votes
2 answers
3k views

How to properly re-license code released under the MIT License?

Suppose I fork a software with 1000 files licensed under the MIT License. There's only a LICENSE file in the root of the project (no MIT License notice at the beginning of the files). Now, if I add ...
Andrea Ligios's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
1k views

License for R scripts

As long as I understood a piece of code is data for the interpreter and thus according to this Q&A an R script is not automatically licensed under GPL. Is that correct? So if I make an R script ...
Optima's user avatar
  • 63
3 votes
2 answers
251 views

Is data part of corresponding source for GPL 3?

The GPL3 defines correspond source as the following: The “Corresponding Source” for a work in object code form means all the source code needed to generate, install, and (for an executable work) run ...
Max Xiong's user avatar
  • 1,077
2 votes
0 answers
94 views

Distributing source code with different licenses in a single page

I'm writing a web application (hobby project) that aggregates documentations and source code of arbitrary artifacts (from Maven Central) and (possibly) present them to the user in a single web page, ...
Haemin Yoo's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
319 views

Dependencies installed via package managers

Is there any difference to provide for instance a npm package.json or to provide all the packages source code in the source code repository of the software project? What's the impact if the project ...
dsm's user avatar
  • 43
1 vote
0 answers
106 views

Can I distribute a LGPLv2.1 derivative work whose source code doesn't compile?

Section 4 of the LGPLv2.1 gives me permission to distribute a "work based on the Library" in object code form, provided that I also distribute "complete corresponding machine-readable ...
Criticizing Israel not allowed's user avatar