[Vm-dev] ScratchPlugin

[Andreas Raab]

Andreas Raab wrote:
> +1. Are you going to check in the support code as well?

Uh, ah. I take that +1 back. I thought you were saying that the source 
code is released under "MIT-License" 
(http://www.opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.php) not "released BY 
the MIT Lifelong Kindergarten group under the Scratch Source Code 
License". The license is pretty problematic from my point of view.

I am specifically not okay with:

* The idea of now and forever preventing anyone to use the name 
"Scratch" for software that utilizes the Squeak VM (in fact, it would 
literally prevent MIT using the stock Squeak VM for Scratch).

* To place trademark restrictions into a software license (the usage of 
logos and trademarks should not be part of a source code license; there 
are other means of protecting those).

* Now and forever make it impossible for any Squeak-based products to 
upload anything to MIT servers (the term is written so broadly that even 
a webserver would fall under this if it implemented a file upload 
provision that one could use to "allow uploading Scratch projects to any 
MIT Scratch website").

* Requiring the source code for any derivative work to be made available 
(making the license viral).

This doesn't work for me at all. Could you ask John to release the 
plugin and support code as plain old MIT license as found on 
http://www.opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.php instead?

Cheers,
   - Andreas

> Bert Freudenberg wrote:
>>
>> Hi folks,
>>
>> is it okay if I add the ScratchPlugin to VMMaker? We are including it 
>> in Etoys and it makes it simpler for John Maloney if was maintained in 
>> the official VM. We got explicit permission for that (even though it's 
>> MIT it doesn't hurt to ask), see forwarded message below.
>>
>> John is working on the 1.4 version as he wrote below, but the previous 
>> one would suit us fine for now, current source is here:
>>
>> http://info.scratch.mit.edu/Source_Code
>>
>> - Bert -
>>
>> Begin forwarded message:
>>
>>> From: John Maloney <jmaloney at media.mit.edu>
>>> Date: 10. September 2009 13:12:00 MESZ
>>> To: Bert Freudenberg <bert at freudenbergs.de>
>>> Cc: "Software Squeakland.org" <software at squeakland.org>
>>> Subject: [sq-software] Re: ScratchPlugin
>>>
>>> Hi, Bert.
>>>
>>> Re: we're about to include the ScratchPlugin with Etoys
>>>
>>> Great!
>>>
>>> Re:
>>>> Mostly for the incredibly useful openURL prim ;) but secondly for 
>>>> access to the ScratchBoard etc., Korakurider already made an Etoys 
>>>> interface for it (though this won't make it in this release). Now 
>>>> the question is if we need to include the "Scratch Source Code 
>>>> License" file with the Etoys release. My reading of it is that we 
>>>> don't. Also we both agreed that having the plugin be part of the 
>>>> Squeak VM proper would make things quite a bit easier, and you 
>>>> certainly would not require the license to be bundled with the VM in 
>>>> that case, right?
>>>
>>> Mitchel has given permission for you to bundle the ScratchPlugin code 
>>> with the Squeak VM. (You can keep this email as proof!) You don't 
>>> need to include the Scratch source license.
>>>
>>> It's also fine to include the include the ScratchPlugin accessor 
>>> methods (and the entire class). Giving credit in a class comment is 
>>> fine.
>>>
>>> Two questions:
>>>
>>>  (a) Are you interested in including the Scratch Unicode plugin as well?
>>>  (b) Should I send you the latest C code for the Scratch Plugin?
>>>
>>> Actually, I'm working to bundle up the Scratch 1.4 source code 
>>> release, so I'll be putting a zip file of the latest C code online in 
>>> the next week or so. But I can send you a copy sooner if you need it.
>>>
>>>     -- John
>>>
>>
>