RE: [avr-libc-dev] Open Source license for embedded systems

[Weddington, Eric]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: 
> address@hidden 
> [mailto:address@hidden
> org] On Behalf Of Sebastien Lelong
> Sent: Tuesday, November 04, 2008 7:35 AM
> To: address@hidden
> Subject: [avr-libc-dev] Open Source license for embedded systems
> 
> Dear AVR guys,
> 
> 
> I'm here to ask you some feedback about using an open source 
> license for
> embedded systems, particularly the BSD license. I'm currently 
> working on a
> project, jallib, trying to build a set of libraries, 
> compatible with jalv2
> compiler, target chips being Microchip PICs (but I come here 
> in peace :)).

I assume that you heard that Atmel *rejected* the Microchip offer?:
<http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&tab=wn&ned=us&ie=UTF-8&ncl=1264242327>

 
> What's your opinion on this ? How did you deal with this ?

That clause says to reproduce the copyright in the documentation. The main 
point is attributing credit where it is due. You cannot promote your software 
as completely 100% written by you, or more importantly, that somehow you own 
the copyright to avr-libc (as an example).

Yes avr-libc has been used in commercial products, without problems. In 
practice, many people do not put the copyright notice in their documentation 
even though they are supposed to. I don't have a big problem with that and I am 
a copyright holder in a number of parts of avr-libc. However, I would care if 
someone else said that they wrote avr-libc (when they didn't), or if someone 
said that they owned all the copyright of avr-libc (which they don't).

The spirit of the avr-libc project is that the software should be freely 
available for use in both commercial products and non-commercial projects, as 
the user sees fit. And that owners of commercial products do not have to open 
up their firmware just because they are using avr-libc. Just don't say that you 
own avr-libc.