OGA and License FAQ Update/Changes
OGA and License FAQ Update/Changes
note:
Reposting this under 'feedback' since that's where it properly belongs.
@bart: This came up in anther discussion but I thought I'd post it as it's own thing both in the hopes of getting it noticed and because it is properly it's own subject anyway.
I also know this topic has been kicked around a little before, so apologies in advance for also raising a dead horse...
Anyway, was wondering if there was anything we could do to better publicize the anti-DRM properties of the CC-BY and CC-SA. Not to discredit the license, but just to make sure submitters understand the license and don't choose it wanting the attribution part but not realizing the anti-DRM is in there.
A thought eugeneloza had on the subject was to provide some kind of basic faq describing the available licenses in layman's terms. This could be linked above/in the license selection check box on the submission form.
I notice there is a breakdown of the licenses in the general site faq:
http://opengameart.org/content/faq#q-proprietary
But:
a) it is pitched a bit more toward developers/users than artists/submitters
b) it isn't linked anywhere from the art submission form (which has just links to the more detailed descriptions of each license)
c) it doesn't mention the OGA-BY license
d) it also doesn't mention the anti-DRM bits of CC-BY/SA licenses
In fact, the 'CC-BY' bit says 'Provided the author is properly credited, it is generally safe to use this content in a commercial work.' Which, if I didn't know better, I would assume meant CC-BY stuff was fine to use on DRM'd platforms. Actually, as a developer, this is what I assumed when I first discovered OGA based on that faq as well as the general license overview provided by the creative commons site. It wasn't until I saw a forum post on the topic that I understood that the 'technical measures' bit was referring to DRM. I guess that's one reason I'm sensitive to this subject, I've made the same mistake just from the other side.
Well, any interest in updating the site FAQ to include some mention of the DRM stuff? What about a more submitter friendly version? (Something like 'Choosing the license that's right for you...') Or a link from the submission form to a general license faq?
Just pinging to keep this one alive:
bart, no interest in this?
https://withthelove.itch.io/
I do not think the problem is that bart is not interested in this. He just seems to be really busy right now...
I think there is a lot that could be done to improve the license selection process on OGA, however I am not sure how best to go about it. In an ideal case I would like to see a license added some where between OGA-BY and the CC0 (that is a really big gap if you think about it.) and an instructional program added to help developers and artists understand some of the legal concerns with various IP laws and how the licenses here apply to that. Quite frankly the FAQ does not even come close to covering it.
I have about run out of time for now so I guess the question is if you could change what the FAQ says about just the CC-by what would you make it say?
Just a note to anyone who may be seeking "legal advise", get a lawyer. OGA is a community of artists, some digital and some interactive, do to the nature of "Intellectual Property Laws" a decent number of people here have spent some time studing licenses and other related things. That said none of us know everything and the laws in one place are different in other places. The conversations we have here are like peers talking to each other about a problem faceing them all. Do not mistake this for fact. Either do the homework or get a lawyer, if problems come up you have no one to blaim but yourself.
Anyway, I guess I will check back later (probably with in two weeks).
Sorry, yeah before I'd moved this thread over to this forum, I'd posted the following caveat:
@bart:
if you are on vacay or just sick of talking about license stuff, I understand and sorry in advance for being a pest, but do I have warn you I plan to keep pinging here until I get a reply ;)
So yeah, I know I'm being a pest here, and it's ok with me if bart takes his time replying, I know he's a busy guy. I just think this is an important topic for I don't want to let it die.
As for how I would change just the CC-BY section of the current FAQ, I guess I would change it to read:
This license requires you to attribute the author of the content in the way that they specify. It also prohibits the use of additional legal or technological measures that may restrict the redistribution of the work (eg. DRM). Provided the author is properly credited and it is distributed only on DRM-free platforms, it is generally safe to use this content in a commercial work.
Well that's a first stab anyway.
https://withthelove.itch.io/