Free software
From en.swpat.org
Free software is software which can be used, copied, redistributed, and whose source code can be viewed, modified, and also redistributed. See also:
"Free software" is not a subtopic of software patents. All types of software development carry the risk of patent infringement. The reason these two topics often appear together is that, firstly, the free software community is very active and vocal in campaigning against software patents, and secondly, software patents threaten a general freedom that free software users value: the freedom to participate in software development.
The term open source is a near-synonym. Patents affect the freedom that users and developers have when dealing with software. Patents don't affect "openness", so en.swpat.org should use the term "free software".
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Why free software groups should be involved
The free software movement says that everyone should be allowed to modify and redistribute the software they use. Software patents interfere with this because they can add legal risks and costs to software development and distribution.
Patent promises in 2005
IBM promised, for 500 of its patents, not to use them against free software.[1]
Sun[2] and Nokia[3] subsequently made promises that were so narrow in scope, they were qualified as "empty" and "next to nothing", respectively, by Richard Stallman.[4]
Related pages on en.swpat.org
- Free software distributors paying patent tax
- Free software projects harmed by software patents
- Fake representatives of free software
- Harm to standards
- Patent clauses in software licences
- Richard Stallman
- Patent promises - many of which are somewhat focussed on free software
- Free Software Foundation
- Novell-Microsoft patent deals
External links
- The Free Software Definition
- Wikipedia: Software patents and free software
- CALIU: Patents Threathen Free Software
- Operating systems will be developed by lawyers not programmers, Pete Loshin, 2006
- June 2009: Microsoft seeks $50 per copy of Xandros GNU/Linux (plus itWire coverage)
- "Effects of Software Patents on Free/Open Source/User Innovation", slides / video (works with Gnash)
- FSF's amicus brief for the 2009 Supreme Court case, contains details of how free software is important and how it's affected
Pages from GNU/Linux distributions
References
- ↑ http://news.zdnet.com/2100-3513_22-140650.html
- ↑ http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9593_22-141018.html
- ↑ http://news.zdnet.com/2100-3513_22-142967.html
- ↑ http://www.linux.com/archive/feature/45271
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