[liberationtech] Licensing Free Software for Liberation + Safety

[Brian Conley]

Hi all,

So as Small World News approaches the beta release of our forthcoming app,
produced with Guardian Project, Free Press Unlimited, and Radio Free
Asia,I'm digging through a variety of licenses and information about how
best to license various items that make up the app, StoryMaker™(not to be
confused with Story Maker from Blackberry).

I believe fundamentally that any element of the *code* that is necessary to
guarantee security/safety must be free & open (FLOSS) in order to guarantee
this.

What I find more difficult is whether releasing the original design
elements, user interface construct, stylings, and trademarks in an open
fashion will provide a similar guarantee of safety.

Please make no mistake, I am not trying to suggest some sort of end-run
around FLOSS principles, etc. What I am looking for is a reasoned dialogue
about best practices for the FLOSS community to avoid tom-skype malware
around FLOSS products.

I'm sure there are much better solutions than not providing the design
files or user-interface code via an open github repo. That said, even
requiring requesters to contact the maintainer of the repo in order to
receive the design elements would provide an interesting bit of user
education around potential risks even possible for FLOSS products.

thanks!

Brian




-- 



Brian Conley

Director, Small World News

http://smallworldnews.tv

m: 646.285.2046

Skype: brianjoelconley
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