The LaTeX Project Public License

[Rod Dixon]

A few comments:

1. "May" and "Must" are important terms in a license. I think sometimes the
permissive "may" is used when you should use the restrictive "must."
Remember, generally, permissive uses mean the user may do as he or she
pleases. Licenses are rarely needed under such circumstances.

2. The preamble is part of the license. As such, the second paragraph and
the last paragraph of the preamble are not within the scope of a binding
license; I would place such precatory language on the project's website, but
not anywhere in the license, itself.

Additonal comments and suggestions are below, but I did not get through the
entire license yet.

> The LaTeX Project Public License
> =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
>
> LPPL Version 1.2  1999-09-03
>
> Copyright 1999 LaTeX3 Project
update: Copyright 1999, 2000 LaTeX3 Project

>     Everyone is allowed to distribute verbatim copies of this
>     license document, but modification of it is not allowed.

This license may not be modified, and must be distributed along with the
Program in accordance with the terms and conditions set forth below.
>
>
> PREAMBLE
> ========
>
> The LaTeX Project Public License (LPPL) is the license under which the
> base LaTeX distribution is distributed.
>
> You may use this license for any program that you have written and wish
> to distribute.  This license may be particularly suitable if your
> program is TeX-related (such as a LaTeX package), but you may use it
> even if your program is unrelated to TeX.  The section `WHETHER AND HOW
> TO DISTRIBUTE PROGRAMS UNDER THIS LICENSE', below, gives instructions,
> examples, and recommendations for authors who are considering
> distributing their programs under this license.
>
> In this license document, `The Program' refers to any program
> distributed under this license.
>
> This license gives conditions under which The Program may be distributed
> and conditions under which modified versions of The Program may be
> distributed.  Individual files of The Program may bear supplementary
> and/or superseding conditions on modification of themselves and on the
> distribution of modified versions of themselves, but *no* file of The
> Program may bear supplementary or superseding conditions on the
> distribution of an unmodified copy of the file.  A distributor wishing
> to distribute a complete, unmodified copy of The Program therefore
> needs to check the conditions only in this license and nowhere else.
>
> Activities other than distribution and/or modification of The Program
> are not covered by this license; they are outside its scope.  In
> particular, the act of running The Program is not restricted.
>
> We, the LaTeX3 Project, believe that the conditions below give you
> the freedom to make and distribute modified versions of The Program
> that conform with whatever technical specifications you wish while
> maintaining the availability, integrity, and reliability of
> The Program.  If you do not see how to achieve your goal while
> meeting these conditions, then read the document `cfgguide.tex'
> in the base LaTeX distribution for suggestions.
>
>
> CONDITIONS ON DISTRIBUTION AND MODIFICATION
> ===========================================
>
> You may distribute a complete, unmodified copy of The Program.
> Distribution of only part of The Program is not allowed.

Here, you have used "may" when "must" is required.
You may freely distributed this Program, but when doing so you MUST
distribute a complete, unmodified copy of The Program. Distribution of only
part of The Program is not allowed.

> You may not modify in any way a file of The Program that bears a legal
> notice forbidding modification of that file.

It looks like the prior sentence and the one immediately following it
constitute your grant clause. These are the rights the copyholder grants to
others. If so, you should draft it in a form using copyright/copyleft terms
such as granting nonexclusive right to...distribute...copy...create
derivative works.... It's up to you what rights you grant, but keep as close
to the terms of art as possible to avoid possible confusion.

>
> You may distribute a modified file of The Program if, and only if, the
> following eight conditions are met:
>
>   1. You must meet any additional conditions borne by the file on the
>      distribution of a modified version of the file as described below
>      in the subsection `Additional Conditions on Individual Files of
>      The Program'.
>
>   2. If the file is a LaTeX software file, then you must meet any
>      applicable additional conditions on the distribution of a modified
>      version of the file that are described below in the subsection
>      `Additional Conditions on LaTeX Software Files'.
>
>   3. You must not distribute the modified file with the filename of the
>      original file.
>
>   4. In the modified file, you must acknowledge the authorship and
>      name of the original file, and the name (if any) of the program
>      which contains it.
>
>   5. You must change any identification string in the file to indicate
>      clearly that the modified file is not part of The Program.
>
>   6. You must change any addresses in the modified file for the
>      reporting of errors in the file or in The Program generally to
>      ensure that reports for files no longer maintained by the original
>      maintainers will be directed to the maintainers of the modified
>      files.
>
>   7. You must distribute the modified file under a license that forbids
>      distribution both of the modified file and of any files derived
>      from the modified file with the filename of the original file.
>
>   8. You must do either (A) or (B):
>
>        (A) distribute a copy of The Program (that is, a complete,
>            unmodified copy of The Program) together with the modified
>            file; if your distribution of the modified file is made by
>            offering access to copy the modified file from a designated
>            place, then offering equivalent access to copy The Program
>            from the same place meets this condition, even though third
>            parties are not compelled to copy The Program along with the
>            modified file;
>
>        (B) provide to those who receive the modified file information
>            that is sufficient for them to obtain a copy of The Program;
>            for example, you may provide a Uniform Resource Locator (URL)
>            for a site that you expect will provide them with a copy of
>            The Program free of charge (either the version from which
>            your modification is derived, or perhaps a later version).
>
> Note that in the above, `distribution' of a file means making the
> file available to others by any means.  This includes, for instance,
> installing the file on any machine in such a way that the file is
> accessible by users other than yourself.  `Modification' of a file
> means any procedure that produces a derivative file under any
> applicable law -- that is, a file containing the original file or
> a significant portion of it, either verbatim or with modifications
> and/or translated into another language.
>
> Changing the name of a file (other than as necessitated by the file
> conventions of the target file systems) is considered to be a
> modification of the file.
>
> The distribution conditions in this license do not have to be
> applied to files that have been modified in accordance with the
> above conditions.  Note, however, that Condition 7. does apply to
> any such modified file.
>
> The conditions above are not intended to prohibit, and hence do not
> apply to, the updating, by any method, of a file so that it becomes
> identical to the latest version of that file of The Program.
>

___________________________________
Rod Dixon
Visiting Assistant Professor of Law
Rutgers University School of Law - Camden
www.cyberspaces.org
rod at cyberspaces.org