[WikiEN-l] Non-Commercial Usage

[Stan Shebs]

Mike Finucane wrote:

> Thanks Chip;
> At last some constructive comments.  I'll bear these in mind.  The 
> issue for me though isnt really protection of my work,
> its about the future of Wikipedia, and what it stands for.  To me its 
> not about creating freedom for corporations, or making profits by 
> selling google ads or whatever, and it certainly isnt about producing 
> some printed encyclopedia.

The beauty of the GNU licenses is that they make it impossible for
corporations to exploit the material. For instance, if some company
tries to sell a book of GNU-licensed text and photos for $50,
anybody can photocopy the entire thing and sell it for $15, or give
copies away on street corners, and the company can't do a thing about
it; any attempt will invalidate their license. That's why Microsoft
treats Linux like a terrible disease, Stallman and Moglen designed
an armorclad license and even Microsoft's army of lawyers haven't
found any loopholes to exploit. Linux has been going strong as free
software for fifteen years, and GNU tools even longer, so I'd say
it's good evidence that the license prevents corporate exploitation.

Also, by saying "non-commercial only", you're excluding many
worthwhile activities, for instance a 1-person print shop that's
taken a job producing brochures for a women's shelter. Even though
the shelter might be non-profit, if the print shop is a normal company,
your non-commercial restriction prevents the shop from using your
pictures in the brochure they produce.

Stan