FMFirefoxCE, licensing, sources, etc

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ginermail
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FMFirefoxCE, licensing, sources, etc

Post by ginermail » Wed Jan 01, 2014 11:18 am

Hello,

I have found FMFirefoxCE great Firefox customization and very useful for use in company. As this is a modified version of Firefox, would be nice to be sure that the code is "clean". MPL license (http://www.mozilla.org/MPL/2.0/) requires to distribute sources together with executable however I haven't managed to find any. Is it possible to get source code of Firefox CE?

Best regards,
Stanislav

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DraconPern
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Re: FMFirefoxCE, licensing, sources, etc

Post by DraconPern » Fri Jan 03, 2014 3:44 pm

Thanks for the question! FMFirefoxCE is not licensed under MPL, so the MPL doesn't apply. If you like, we can work out an agreement for the source code to be audited by a 3rd party for 'clean', such as security issues, bugs, etc.
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ginermail
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Re: FMFirefoxCE, licensing, sources, etc

Post by ginermail » Fri Jan 03, 2014 4:31 pm

Hello DraconPern,

Thank you for the information and the offer.
At the same time I would like to mention the part of the license that requires to keep modified parts open.

http://julien.ponge.org/blog/mozilla-pu ... dleground/
While the MPL license itself allows derivative works to be released under any license, including a proprietary one, it still requires a form of copyleft at the file level. This consequently puts the MPL in the same bucket as the Eclipse Public License and the GNU LGPL.
http://www.mozilla.org/MPL/2.0/
3.3. Distribution of a Larger Work

You may create and distribute a Larger Work under terms of Your choice, provided that You also comply with the requirements of this License for the Covered Software. If the Larger Work is a combination of Covered Software with a work governed by one or more Secondary Licenses, and the Covered Software is not Incompatible With Secondary Licenses, this License permits You to additionally distribute such Covered Software under the terms of such Secondary License(s), so that the recipient of the Larger Work may, at their option, further distribute the Covered Software under the terms of either this License or such Secondary License(s).
Best regards,
Stanislav

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DraconPern
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Re: FMFirefoxCE, licensing, sources, etc

Post by DraconPern » Fri Jan 03, 2014 8:09 pm

Please consult Q11 in the commonly asked question regarding source code licensing at http://www.mozilla.org/MPL/2.0/FAQ.html
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ginermail
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Re: FMFirefoxCE, licensing, sources, etc

Post by ginermail » Sat Jan 04, 2014 1:02 am

DraconPern wrote:Please consult Q11 in the commonly asked question regarding source code licensing at http://www.mozilla.org/MPL/2.0/FAQ.html
Q11 says exactly the same. Modified files have to be opened. New files can be closed.

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Re: FMFirefoxCE, licensing, sources, etc

Post by DraconPern » Mon Jan 06, 2014 2:58 am

I can definitely release the modified files for code review, the changes are actually fairly minor. Though, w/o the new files, you won't be able to compile the project.
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gerv
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Re: FMFirefoxCE, licensing, sources, etc

Post by gerv » Thu Feb 06, 2014 11:11 am

Hi,

My name's Gerv; I do licensing for Mozilla. I just wanted to clarify some things.

It is true that the MPL allows you to release a binary under any terms you like, but that doesn't mean the "MPL doesn't apply", because there are still requirements to release any Modifications (as defined by section 1.10 of the license).

I wrote the FAQ Q.11, and I can confirm it's correct :-) It is not only required to release Modifications, but it's required that you offer them to anyone who receives a binary, which means that they must be available at the same time that the binary is released, and must be available for every binary release.

It is true that without the new files, it may not be possible to compile the project. But that doesn't excuse anyone from the requirement to release the source they do have to release, to offer it to everyone who gets the binary, and to give it to any of those people who asks for it. So I would encourage the developers of FMFirefoxCE to come into compliance with the MPL by immediately releasing their Modifications.

Hope that helps :-) Do contact me as gerv at mozilla dot org if I can be of further help.

Gerv

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Re: FMFirefoxCE, licensing, sources, etc

Post by DraconPern » Thu Feb 06, 2014 1:16 pm

Thanks for the clarification!
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