pcplantdb

[Richard Morris <webmaster@pfaf.org>]

> From: "Lawrence F. London, Jr." <lfl@intrex.net>
> Organization: http://market-farming.com  --  Venaura Farm
> To: pcplantdb@lists.ibiblio.org
> Subject: Re: [pcplantdb] Wiki/DB relations
> Reply-To: pcplantdb@lists.ibiblio.org
> 
> John Schinnerer wrote:
> > It's a fine idea to have the wiki collect data for the eventual plant
> > DB.  But as your conversation recognizes, to automate moving data from
> > the wiki to the DB, the wiki data schema has to match the DB schema.
> 
> As I will occupy all time I have available to entering data into the wiki
> (and into my website) I will leave porting it to the db to others. I want
> a record of and my own copy of contributions I make to the db. Rich needs to
> let us know what the nonpaying public will be able to access in PFAF and 
> what they
> can do with information resources thet derive from PFAF. As I have spent 
> over 15
> years doing what I do on the Web without pay I have a special interest in 
> the open
> source information concept. I understand PFAF needs income but for my 
> purposes I want
> what I donate to PFAF to be made available to the public for free.

There is not a problem here. The way I picture the way things are set up
is that each individual contribution is attributed to its author
the copyright/license of that is up to the individual author.
So data you add is still your data and not pfaf's.

Question, I know in OpenSource the modifications made MUST
be available to the original author. Don't know on what terms
this would be. I guess that would mean that if pfaf add a lot of
data under OpenSource edits people do will be available to pfaf.
(And we can do what the hell we want with it??? Hum maybe not as the
edits will be GPL'd)

I haven't really studied gnu license in detail, if anyone
knows more about this it would be good to know.

As to our Licensing policy, my general thoughts (not necessarily
pfaf's are) are

1) For Public Domain non commercial use
        as GPL (or something more appropriate for data)
        i.e. a) any derived product must be GPL as well
             b) modified data must be freely available to 
                third parties at no cost (excluding postage)

2) For commercial derived products
        A license fee is payable to PFAF
        (Small proportions of data may be commercially redistributed
        for free)

3) Above only applies to PFAF dataset. The php/mysql code
will probably be GPL by the project team.
Minor Edits to pfaf data probably count as modifications.
Whole new sections (say adding data about folklaw) and
new plants probably count as original data rather than
modifications.

This is entirely in line with OpenSouce movement. Please note that
OpenSource != FreeSoftware 
OpenSource != PublicDomain

i.e. PublicDomain means anyone can do what the hell they want,
sell it and make mega bucks off your hard word.

Question how would YOU feel if Monsanto took the data you added to
the wiki/pcplantdb turned it into a commercial product which they sold
(making the original data available via an obscure link on their
website)?

I've included MySQL's interpretation of the GNU license and the
GPL below. I'm thinking of something similar in spirit for the PFAF
dataset.

> 1.3.1 MySQL Licensing Policy 
> 
> The formal terms of the GPL license can be found at section K GNU
> GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE. Basically, our licensing policy and
> interpretation of the GPL is as follows: 
> 
> If you need
> a commercial MySQL license, because the GPL license doesn't suit your
> application, you can buy one at https://order.mysql.com/. 
> 
> For normal internal use, MySQL costs nothing. You do not have to pay us
> if you do not want to. 
> 
> A license is required if: 
> 
> You link a program, that is not free software, with code from the MySQL
> server or clients that has the GPL copyright. This happens for example
> when you use MySQL as an embedded server in your applications or when
> you add not free extensions to the MySQL server. In this case your
> application/code would also become GPL through the GPL license that acts
> as a virus. By licensing MySQL server from MySQL AB under a commercial
> license you will avoid this problem. See
> http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl-faq.html. You have a commercial
> application that ONLY works with MySQL and ships the application with
> the MySQL server. This is because we view this as linking even if it is
> done over the network. You have a distribution of MySQL and you don't
> provide the source code for your copy of the MySQL server, as defined in
> the GPL license. 
> 
> A license is NOT required if: 
> 
> You do not need a license to include the client code in commercial
> programs. The client part of MySQL licensed with the LGPL GNU Library
> General Public License. The mysql command-line client includes code from
> the readline library that is under the GPL. If your use of MySQL does
> not require a license, but you like MySQL and want to encourage further
> development, you are certainly welcome to purchase a license or MySQL
> support anyway. If you use MySQL in a commercial context such that you
> profit by its use, we ask that you further the development of MySQL by
> purchasing some level of support. We feel that if MySQL helps your
> business, it is reasonable to ask that you help MySQL. (Otherwise, if
> you ask us support questions, you are not only using for free something
> into which we've put a lot a work, you're asking us to provide free
> support, too.) 
> 
> For circumstances under which a MySQL license is required, you need a
> license per machine that runs the mysqld server. However, a multiple-CPU
> machine counts as a single machine, and there is no restriction on the
> number of MySQL servers that run on one machine, or on the number of
> clients concurrently connected to a server running on that machine! 
> 
> If you have any questions as to whether or not a license is required for
> your particular use of MySQL, please read this again and then contact
> us. See section 1.3.4.2 Contact Information. 
> 
> If you require a MySQL license, the easiest way to pay for it is to use
> the license form on MySQL's secure server at https://order.mysql.com/.
> Other forms of payment are discussed in section 1.3.4.1 Payment
> information. 

> K GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE 
> 
> Version 2, June 1991 
> 
> Copyright © 1989, 1991 Free Software Foundation, Inc. 59 Temple Place -
> Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA 
> 
> Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies of this
> license document, but changing it is not allowed. 
> 
> K.1 Preamble 
> 
> The licenses for most software are designed to take away your freedom to
> share and change it. By contrast, the GNU General Public License is
> intended to guarantee your freedom to share and change free software--to
> make sure the software is free for all its users. This General Public
> License applies to most of the Free Software Foundation's software and
> to any other program whose authors commit to using it. (Some other Free
> Software Foundation software is covered by the GNU Library General
> Public License instead.) You can apply it to your programs, too. 
> 
> When we speak of free software, we are referring to freedom, not price.
> Our General Public Licenses are designed to make sure that you have the
> freedom to distribute copies of free software (and charge for this
> service if you wish), that you receive source code or can get it if you
> want it, that you can change the software or use pieces of it in new
> free programs; and that you know you can do these things. 
> 
> To protect your rights, we need to make restrictions that forbid anyone
> to deny you these rights or to ask you to surrender the rights. These
> restrictions translate to certain responsibilities for you if you
> distribute copies of the software, or if you modify it. 
> 
> For example, if you distribute copies of such a program, whether gratis
> or for a fee, you must give the recipients all the rights that you have.
> You must make sure that they, too, receive or can get the source code.
> And you must show them these terms so they know their rights. 
> 
> We protect your rights with two steps: (1) copyright the software, and
> (2) offer you this license which gives you legal permission to copy,
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> 
> Also, for each author's protection and ours, we want to make certain
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> 
> Finally, any free program is threatened constantly by software patents.
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> The precise terms and conditions for copying, distribution and
> modification follow. 
> 
> K.2 TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR COPYING, DISTRIBUTION AND MODIFICATION 
> 
> 1.This License applies to any program or other work which contains a
> notice placed by the copyright holder saying it may be distributed under
> the terms of this General Public License. The ``Program'', below, refers
> to any such program or work, and a ``work based on the Program'' means
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> (Hereinafter, translation is included without limitation in the term
> ``modification''.) Each licensee is addressed as ``you''. Activities
> other than copying, distribution and modification are not covered by
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> is not restricted, and the output from the Program is covered only if
> its contents constitute a work based on the Program (independent of
> having been made by running the Program). Whether that is true depends
> on what the Program does. 
> 
> 2.You may copy and distribute verbatim copies of the Program's source
> code as you receive it, in any medium, provided that you conspicuously
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> You may charge a fee for the physical act of transferring a copy, and
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> 
> 3.You may modify your copy or copies of the Program or any portion of
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> such modifications or work under the terms of Section 1 above, provided
> that you also meet all of these conditions: 
> 
> 3.1.You must cause the modified files to carry prominent notices stating
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> 
> 3.2.You must cause any work that you distribute or publish, that in whole
> or in part contains or is derived from the Program or any part thereof,
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> 
> 3.3.If the modified program normally reads commands interactively when
> run, you must cause it, when started running for such interactive use in
> the most ordinary way, to print or display an announcement including an
> appropriate copyright notice and a notice that there is no warranty (or
> else, saying that you provide a warranty) and that users may
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> interactive but does not normally print such an announcement, your work
> based on the Program is not required to print an announcement.) 
> 
> These requirements apply to the modified work as a whole. If
> identifiable sections of that work are not derived from the Program, and
> can be reasonably considered independent and separate works in
> themselves, then this License, and its terms, do not apply to those
> sections when you distribute them as separate works. But when you
> distribute the same sections as part of a whole which is a work based on
> the Program, the distribution of the whole must be on the terms of this
> License, whose permissions for other licensees extend to the entire
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> 
> 4.You may copy and distribute the Program (or a work based on it, under
> Section 2) in object code or executable form under the terms of Sections
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> 5.You may not copy, modify, sublicense, or distribute the Program except
> as expressly provided under this License. Any attempt otherwise to copy,
> modify, sublicense or distribute the Program is void, and will
> automatically terminate your rights under this License. However, parties
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> 
> 6.You are not required to accept this License, since you have not signed
> it. However, nothing else grants you permission to modify or distribute
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> 
> 7.Each time you redistribute the Program (or any work based on the
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> 
> 8.If, as a consequence of a court judgment or allegation of patent
> infringement or for any other reason (not limited to patent issues),
> conditions are imposed on you (whether by court order, agreement or
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> excuse you from the conditions of this License. If you cannot distribute
> so as to satisfy simultaneously your obligations under this License and
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> not permit royalty-free redistribution of the Program by all those who
> receive copies directly or indirectly through you, then the only way you
> could satisfy both it and this License would be to refrain entirely from
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> invalid or unenforceable under any particular circumstance, the balance
> of the section is intended to apply and the section as a whole is
> intended to apply in other circumstances. It is not the purpose of this
> section to induce you to infringe any patents or other property right
> claims or to contest validity of any such claims; this section has the
> sole purpose of protecting the integrity of the free software
> distribution system, which is implemented by public license practices.
> Many people have made generous contributions to the wide range of
> software distributed through that system in reliance on consistent
> application of that system; it is up to the author/donor to decide if he
> or she is willing to distribute software through any other system and a
> licensee cannot impose that choice. This section is intended to make
> thoroughly clear what is believed to be a consequence of the rest of
> this License. 
> 
> 9.If the distribution and/or use of the Program is restricted in certain
> countries either by patents or by copyrighted interfaces, the original
> copyright holder who places the Program under this License may add an
> explicit geographical distribution limitation excluding those countries,
> so that distribution is permitted only in or among countries not thus
> excluded. In such case, this License incorporates the limitation as if
> written in the body of this License. 
> 
> 10.The Free Software Foundation may publish revised and/or new versions
> of the General Public License from time to time. Such new versions will
> be similar in spirit to the present version, but may differ in detail to
> address new problems or concerns. Each version is given a distinguishing
> version number. If the Program specifies a version number of this
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> option of following the terms and conditions either of that version or
> of any later version published by the Free Software Foundation. If the
> Program does not specify a version number of this License, you may
> choose any version ever published by the Free Software Foundation. 
> 
> 11.If you wish to incorporate parts of the Program into other free
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> author to ask for permission. For software which is copyrighted by the
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> sometimes make exceptions for this. Our decision will be guided by the
> two goals of preserving the free status of all derivatives of our free
> software and of promoting the sharing and reuse of software generally. 
> 
> 9.4 NO WARRANTY 
> 
> 12.BECAUSE THE PROGRAM IS LICENSED FREE OF CHARGE, THERE IS NO WARRANTY
> FOR THE PROGRAM, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW. EXCEPT WHEN
> OTHERWISE STATED IN WRITING THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND/OR OTHER PARTIES
> PROVIDE THE PROGRAM ``AS IS'' WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER
> EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED
> WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE
> ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF THE PROGRAM IS WITH
> YOU. SHOULD THE PROGRAM PROVE DEFECTIVE, YOU ASSUME THE COST OF ALL
> NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR OR CORRECTION. 
> 
> 13.IN NO EVENT UNLESS REQUIRED BY APPLICABLE LAW OR AGREED TO IN WRITING
> WILL ANY COPYRIGHT HOLDER, OR ANY OTHER PARTY WHO MAY MODIFY AND/OR
> REDISTRIBUTE THE PROGRAM AS PERMITTED ABOVE, BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR
> DAMAGES, INCLUDING ANY GENERAL, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL
> DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE PROGRAM
> (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF DATA OR DATA BEING RENDERED
> INACCURATE OR LOSSES SUSTAINED BY YOU OR THIRD PARTIES OR A FAILURE OF
> THE PROGRAM TO OPERATE WITH ANY OTHER PROGRAMS), EVEN IF SUCH HOLDER OR
> OTHER PARTY HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. 
> 
> 9.5 END OF TERMS AND CONDITIONS 
> 
> K.3 How to Apply These Terms to Your New Programs 
> 
> If you develop a new program, and you want it to be of the greatest
> possible use to the public, the best way to achieve this is to make it
> free software which everyone can redistribute and change under these
> terms. 
> 
> To do so, attach the following notices to the program. It is safest to
> attach them to the start of each source file to most effectively convey
> the exclusion of warranty; and each file should have at least the
> ``copyright'' line and a pointer to where the full notice is found. 
> 
> one line to give the program's name and a brief idea of what it does.
> Copyright (C) yyyy name of author 
> 
> This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it
> under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the
> Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or (at your
> option) any later version. 
> 
> This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
> WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
> MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General
> Public License for more details. 
> 
> You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along
> with this program; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc.,
> 59 Temple Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA. 
> 
> Also add information on how to contact you by electronic and paper mail.
> 
> If the program is interactive, make it output a short notice like this
> when it starts in an interactive mode: 
> 
> Gnomovision version 69, Copyright (C) 19yy name of author Gnomovision
> comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY; for details type `show w'. This is
> free software, and you are welcome to redistribute it under certain
> conditions; type `show c' for details. 
> 
> The hypothetical commands `show w' and `show c' should show the
> appropriate parts of the General Public License. Of course, the commands
> you use may be called something other than `show w' and `show c'; they
> could even be mouse-clicks or menu items--whatever suits your program. 
> 
> You should also get your employer (if you work as a programmer) or your
> school, if any, to sign a ``copyright disclaimer'' for the program, if
> necessary. Here is a sample; alter the names: 
> 
> Yoyodyne, Inc., hereby disclaims all copyright interest in the program
> `Gnomovision' (which makes passes at compilers) written by James Hacker.
> 
> signature of Ty Coon, 1 April 1989 Ty Coon, President of Vice 
> 
> This General Public License does not permit incorporating your program
> into proprietary programs. If your program is a subroutine library, you
> may consider it more useful to permit linking proprietary applications
> with the library. If this is what you want to do, use the GNU Library
> General Public License instead of this License. 

--
Plants for a Future: 7000 useful plants
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