Re: libgit2 - a true git library

From: Nicolas Pitre <nico@cam.org>
Date: Oct 31, 2008, 20:24 UTC
Message-ID: <alpine.LFD.2.00.0810311558540.13034@xanadu.home>
In-Reply-To: <20081031174745.GA4058@artemis.corp>

On Fri, 31 Oct 2008, Pierre Habouzit wrote:

> Last but not least, I believe parts of git-core are currently easy to
> just take. For example, any code *I* wrote, I hereby give permission to
> relicense it in any of the following licenses: BSD-like, MIT-like,
> WTFPL.

First........... is there really a need to re-license it? If so then the choice of license is IMHO rather important.

> Nicolas already said I think that he was okay with relicensing his 
> work too e.g.

Depends.  Sure, I gave permission to copy some of my code for JGIT 
because 1) JGIT is Java code in which I have little interest, 2) the 
different license was justified by the nature of the JGIT project, and 
3) although no license convey this I asked for the C version of git to 
remain the authoritative reference and that any improvements done to JGIT 
first be usable in the C version under the GPL.

Of course a library might need a different license than the GPL to be widely useful from a linkage stand point, but the code within that library does not need to be miles away from the GPL. What I personally care about is for improvements to my code to always be contributed back, which pretty much discards BSD-like licenses.

My favorite license for a library is the GPL with the gcc exception, i.e. what libraries coming with gcc are using. They're GPL but with an exception allowing them to be linked with anything. And because everything on a Linux system, including proprietary applications, is likely linked against those gcc libs, then there is nothing that would prevent libgit to be linked against anything as well. But the library code itself has GPL protection.

For reference, here's the exception text:

   In addition to the permissions in the GNU General Public License, the
   Free Software Foundation gives you unlimited permission to link the
   compiled version of this file into combinations with other programs,
   and to distribute those combinations without any restriction coming
   from the use of this file.  (The General Public License restrictions
   do apply in other respects; for example, they cover modification of
   the file, and distribution when not linked into a combine
   executable.)

Nicolas