For one, the OSD allows private modifications.
As do the MPL and the IDPL. I should have been more clear - there was no intention to restrict private use of the code.
The OSL requires publication of modified source code when the derivative work is distributed.
Sorry, I was too quick in responding to Ian and confused the OSL with the BSD/MIT style licenses. Our intention is to allow pieces of our code to be included in products that are not released under any open source license, provided that interfaces between our code and the closed source code be published.
Here are two examples that I think would not be allowed under OSL which are allowed under IDPL.
A commercial database repair tool that uses the on disk structure definitions, compression/decompression routines and other parts of the Firebird database code. The repair tool combines that code with proprietary code to discover and repairs corruption. Developers of such a tool would publish the interfaces between the Firebird code and their own code, but would not be compelled to release their product under an open source license.
A package for automatically compressing the stored format of the database. The actual compression code could remain proprietary. The developer could sell "Firebird in half the space". However the interfaces to the compression code would be published under the IDPL, allowing others to create plug-replaceable compression packages.
Regards,
Ann www.ibphoenix.com
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