WARNING: This document is made public for archival and historical purposes only. Not all of the information is current, and accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
Part I Detailed Analysis of the GNU GPL and Related Licenses
This part of the tutorial gives a comprehensive explanation of the most popular Free Software copyright license, the
GNU General Public License (“GNU GPL”, or sometimes just “GPL”) – both version 2 (“GPLv2”) and version 3
(“GPLv3”) – and teaches lawyers, software developers, managers and businesspeople how to use the GPL (and
GPL’d software) successfully both as a community-building “Constitution” for a software project,
and to incorporate copylefted software into a new Free Software business and in existing, successful
enterprises.
To benefit from this part of the tutorial, readers should have a general familiarity with software development
processes. A basic understanding of how copyright law applies to software is also helpful. The tutorial is of most
interest to lawyers, software developers and managers who run or advise software businesses that modify and/or
redistribute software under the terms of the GNU GPL (or who wish to do so in the future), and those who wish to
make use of existing GPL’d software in their enterprise.
Upon completion of this part of the tutorial, readers can expect to have learned the following:
The freedom-defending purpose of various terms in the GNU GPLv2 and GPLv3.
The differences between GPLv2 and GPLv3.
The redistribution options under the GPLv2 and GPLv3.
The obligations when modifying GPLv2’d or GPLv3’d software.
How to build a plan for proper and successful compliance with the GPL.
The business advantages that the GPL provides.
The most common business models used in conjunction with the GPL.
How existing GPL’d software can be used in existing enterprises.
The basics of LGPLv2.1 and LGPLv3, and how they differ from the GPLv2 and GPLv3, respectively.
The basics to begin understanding the complexities regarding derivative and combined works of
software.
