Sun plans July release for StarOffice 8

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Nothing new, really.

[quote]Actually, any contributions to the OpenOffice.org code base have to include a joint copyright assignment to Sun Microsystems. In other words, the author keeps copyright but agrees to share it with Sun.[/quote]

Sun abides by the GPL/LGPL. The writer of the code is always the copyright holder of the code. The StarOffice code belonged to Sun before they open sourced it. It will allways be theirs until they assign/sell the copyright to someone else. That is how the GPL/LGPL has always worked. You share the copyright with Sun because Sun's contribution belongs to them and your contribution belongs to you and so the final product belongs to you both. Under the GPL, if you want to make alterations to someone else's work, you either have to pay them for a license or release your code under the same license revision or greater as the original code was. If you don't want to release your code as GPL/LGPL then buy a license from the copyright holders. Since Sun releases all contributions back to OOo, they can use it in StarOffice. Any additional modules they put in StarOffice that is strictly proprietary, they do not have to release.

[quote]Sun, as joint copyright holder, is not required to do that.[/quote]

Actually, they are required to and they do abide. They are joint copyright holder of the code in its entirety but they do not hold copyright to the parts that others have contributed. The individual contributor is the copyright holder of their contributions. The contributor does not hold copyright to the code that Sun contributed but because Sun holds copyright to some of the code and other contributors hold copyright to other parts of the code then the work is jointly copyrighted. Also the OOo project holds copyright on the colective work.They therefore release all contributions into OOo but, as stated above, any module that is strictly proprietary does not have to be released.

Think of it as a book that I compile. I have three of Dr. Seuss's books in it followed by three of the Bernstein Bears stories in it followed by several Brother's Grimm stories in it. Each of these people retain their copyrights to their portions and I cannot copy the work without their permission so if you wanted to copy a portion of the book, you would have to seek permission of the copyright owner/s. They all have a steak in the book but me, as compiler of the work, holds copyright to the colective work. I then get Penguin to publlish it and they add a Forward, a Preface, and Introduction, a front and back cover, etc. and publish it.

That does not give me permission to freely make as many copies as I wish without the permissions of the original copyright holders and it does not mean that the original copyright holders has to seek permission from me or Penguin to continue copying their own contributions. It also means that the Forward, Preface, Introduction, Acknowledgments, etc, are all copyrighted by Penguin and none of the three other contributors nor myself can copy any of that without Penguin's permission and Penguin does not need their permission to copy any of that.

That is how OOo, its contributors and Sun works. The contributors are Dr. Seuss, The Bernsteins, the Grimm brothers and Sun (the contributor). OOo makes a compilation with the permission of the four copyright holders (contributors). Sun (the publisher) adds the Forward, Preface, Introduction, etc and publishes it with the permission of the copyright holders (under the GPL/LGPL) and OOo copies the compilation without the extra additions of Sun (preface, etc.) with the permission of the four contributors (including Sun, the contributor but not Sun, the Publisher).

Does that now make sence? You have to realise that Sun wears two hats here. That should clear up some confusion but the Sun contributions to StarOffice do not have to be released but their contributions to the original project do and are.

Posted by: The King's Servant   Posted on: 05/03/05 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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