READIT - 2009 - Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research

Proceedings of READIT-2009, Kalpakkam - 603 102, 29-30 Dec 2009
6. No Discrimination against Fields of Endeavor - The license must not restrict anyone
from making use of the program in a specific field of endeavor.
7. Distribution of License - The rights attached to the program must apply to all to whom
the program is redistributed without the need for execution of an additional license by those
parties.
8. License Must Not Be Specific to a Product - The rights attached to the program must
not depend on the program's being part of a particular software distribution. If the program is
extracted from that distribution and used or distributed within the terms of the program's
license, all parties to whom the program is redistributed should have the same rights as those
that are granted in conjunction with the original software distribution.
9. LICENSE MUST NOT RESTRICT OTHER SOFTWARE - The license must not
place restrictions on other software that is distributed along with the licensed software.
10. LICENSE MUST BE TECHNOLOGY-NEUTRAL - No provision of the license may
be predicated on any individual technology or style of interface.
WHY OPEN SOURCE?
One of the Keystone Principles of the U.S. Association of Research Libraries states,
"Libraries will create interoperability in the systems they develop and create open source
software for the access, dissemination, and management of information." (Keystone
Principles, 2003, section 2.4). Many have argued that because of the principles of code
availability and universal open standards, libraries and library projects are almost ethically
required to use and develop OSS. Also many libraries, faced with budgetary crunches and the
resultant lack of technological resources, have opted for open source solutions to some of
their information technology problems. It is frequently very inexpensive, if not free, and can
operate perfectly well on older computers -- which libraries often have in abundance. Besides
cost and flexibility, there are many other compelling reasons for libraries to make the switch
from closed source to open source software, including software licensing (most open source
programs are subject to much more lenient licenses than closed source programs, and may
provide less legal hassles for the library), and open standards, which is an issue that many
open source advocates and developers also grapple with.
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