Re: [PATCH v9 1/6] LICENSES: Add the copyleft-next-0.3.1 license

From: Luis Chamberlain <mcgrof@kernel.org>
To: Thomas Gleixner <tglx@linutronix.de>,
	Richard Fontana <fontana@sharpeleven.org>
Cc: tj@kernel.org, gregkh@linuxfoundation.org,
	akpm@linux-foundation.org, jeyu@kernel.org, shuah@kernel.org,
	bvanassche@acm.org, dan.j.williams@intel.com, joe@perches.com,
	keescook@chromium.org, rostedt@goodmis.org, minchan@kernel.org,
	linux-spdx@vger.kernel.org, linux-doc@vger.kernel.org,
	linux-block@vger.kernel.org, linux-fsdevel@vger.kernel.org,
	linux-kselftest@vger.kernel.org, linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org,
	Goldwyn Rodrigues <rgoldwyn@suse.com>, Kuno Woudt <kuno@frob.nl>,
	copyleft-next@lists.fedorahosted.org,
	Ciaran Farrell <Ciaran.Farrell@suse.com>,
	Christopher De Nicolo <Christopher.DeNicolo@suse.com>,
	Christoph Hellwig <hch@lst.de>, Jonathan Corbet <corbet@lwn.net>,
	Thorsten Leemhuis <linux@leemhuis.info>
Subject: Re: [PATCH v9 1/6] LICENSES: Add the copyleft-next-0.3.1 license
Date: Wed, 25 May 2022 09:57:26 -0700	[thread overview]
Message-ID: <Yo5f9nctTwHZqPbl@bombadil.infradead.org> (raw)
In-Reply-To: <87ee0k0wrn.ffs@tglx>

On Mon, May 23, 2022 at 11:22:36PM +0200, Thomas Gleixner wrote:
> On Fri, Oct 29 2021 at 11:44, Luis Chamberlain wrote:
> > --- /dev/null
> > +++ b/LICENSES/dual/copyleft-next-0.3.1
> > @@ -0,0 +1,237 @@
> > +Valid-License-Identifier: copyleft-next-0.3.1
> > +SPDX-URL: https://spdx.org/licenses/copyleft-next-0.3.1
> > +Usage-Guide:
> > +  This license can be used in code, it has been found to be GPLv2 compatible
> > +  by attorneys at Redhat and SUSE, however to air on the side of caution,
> 
> air ?

Hehe, thanks I'll fix in the next spin.

> > +  it's best to only use it together with a GPL2 compatible license using "OR".
> 
> This paragraph is not really understandable for Joe Developer.
> 
>   copyleft-next-0.3.1 is explicitly compatible with GPLv2 (or later) and
>   can therefore be used for kernel code. Though the best and recommended
>   practice is to express this in the SPDX license identifier by
>   licensing the code under both licenses expressed by the OR operator.
> 
> Hmm?

Let me try clarifying this further, how about:

   copyleft-next-0.3.1 is explicitly compatible with GPLv2 (or later) and
   can therefore be used for kernel code. Despite this, if you use
   copyleft-next-0.3.1 on Linux, the recommended practice is to express
   dual licensing with GPL using in the SPDX license identifiers by
   using by the OR operator.

> > +  To use the copyleft-next-0.3.1 license put the following SPDX tag/value
> > +  pair into a comment according to the placement guidelines in the
> > +  licensing rules documentation:
> > +    SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0 OR copyleft-next-0.3.1
> > +    SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0-only OR copyleft-next 0.3.1
> > +    SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0+ OR copyleft-next-0.3.1
> > +    SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0-or-later OR copyleft-next-0.3.1
> 
> Please don't propagate the GPL-2.0 and GPL-2.0+ tags. They are
> outdated (still valid) in the SPDX spec, which reminds me that I should
> update the relevant documentation...

OK thanks for the recommendation, I'll leave it at:

+    SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0 OR copyleft-next-0.3.1
+    SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0-or-later OR copyleft-next-0.3.1

  Luis