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   Chris Ferdinandi ⚓️ (cferdinandi@mastodon.social)'s status on Wednesday, 23-Apr-2025 23:16:30 JST Chris Ferdinandi ⚓️

   ⚓️ New Article: Open source is kind of broken https://ift.tt/KljweJQ #WebDev #FrontEndDeveloper #100DaysOfCode #CodeNewbie

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     Alfred M. Szmidt (amszmidt@mastodon.social)'s status on Wednesday, 23-Apr-2025 23:16:28 JST Alfred M. Szmidt

     in reply to

     • mav :happy_blob:

     @cferdinandi @mav > As a result, GPL and MIT code are incompatible together.

     That is not correct. The #GNU #GPL and “MIT” (Expat license) are compatible.

     https://www.gnu.org/licenses/license-list.en.html#Expat

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     Chris Ferdinandi ⚓️ (cferdinandi@mastodon.social)'s status on Wednesday, 23-Apr-2025 23:16:29 JST Chris Ferdinandi ⚓️

     in reply to

     • mav :happy_blob:

     @mav Sort of. It's "infectious" in that any derivative work must take on the same license. If you, for example, use a GPL library to build a website, all other parts of that website are then also licensed under GPL.

     This is why all WP themes must be GPL licensed. As a result, GPL and MIT code are incompatible together.

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     mav :happy_blob: (mav@masto.hackers.town)'s status on Wednesday, 23-Apr-2025 23:16:30 JST mav :happy_blob:

     in reply to

     @cferdinandi This is a really well thought out article but I am confused about one thing:

     "But GPL is sticky, so if you release the project you built using it, you need to license your entire project under the same license."

     I thought you just had to release the portion of the code that was GPL, i.e. you use one library, that's the only part that must be GPL. I take it that's not correct?

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     Chris Ferdinandi ⚓️ (cferdinandi@mastodon.social)'s status on Thursday, 24-Apr-2025 01:16:47 JST Chris Ferdinandi ⚓️

     in reply to

     • Alfred M. Szmidt
     • mav :happy_blob:

     @amszmidt @mav I'm not sure how that's possible. GPL infects the MIT licensed code, which allows things GPL does not.

     WordPress has successfully argued that WP themes and plugins cannot be licensed as MIT because of WP's GPL license.

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     Alfred M. Szmidt (amszmidt@mastodon.social)'s status on Thursday, 24-Apr-2025 01:17:21 JST Alfred M. Szmidt

     in reply to

     • mav :happy_blob:

     @cferdinandi The Expat license allows for exactly the same things the GNU GPL does, which is what makes them compatible. E.g., a non-commercial software license would not be compatible with the #GNU #GPL since it limits how you can use a program, something the GNU GPL does not.

     @mav

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     Alfred M. Szmidt (amszmidt@mastodon.social)'s status on Thursday, 24-Apr-2025 01:17:22 JST Alfred M. Szmidt

     in reply to

     • mav :happy_blob:

     @cferdinandi The GNU GPL doesn't infect anything, it is entirely up to the person incorporating things to decide on what to do.

     Expat licensed code and GNU GPL licensed code can be freely mixed, WP themes _CAN_ be licensed under the Expat license, but the entirety is under the terms of the GPL (that is what compatibility means).

     I don't know where you have read that, or who said that but it is completely wrong.

     @mav

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     Alfred M. Szmidt (amszmidt@mastodon.social)'s status on Thursday, 24-Apr-2025 01:17:38 JST Alfred M. Szmidt

     in reply to

     • mav :happy_blob:

     @cferdinandi @mav https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.en.html#WhatIsCompatible has a good explanation.