Comments on: Making Money With WordPress Plugins – Mixing the GNU License With Others http://hackadelic.com/making-money-with-wordpress-plugins-mixing-the-gnu-license-with-others Think More, Code Less! - Intelligent WordPress Solutions Thu, 11 Mar 2010 12:18:24 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: The Journey of Custom Plugin Design for WP | The Shopping Network http://hackadelic.com/making-money-with-wordpress-plugins-mixing-the-gnu-license-with-others/comment-page-1#comment-4353 The Journey of Custom Plugin Design for WP | The Shopping Network Mon, 07 Sep 2009 16:22:26 +0000 http://hackadelic.com/?p=472#comment-4353 [...] Making Money With WordPress Plugins – Mixing the GNU License With Others [...] [...] Making Money With WordPress Plugins – Mixing the GNU License With Others [...]

]]> By: Hackadelic http://hackadelic.com/making-money-with-wordpress-plugins-mixing-the-gnu-license-with-others/comment-page-1#comment-3554 Hackadelic Sat, 08 Aug 2009 12:45:24 +0000 http://hackadelic.com/?p=472#comment-3554 W-Shadow, basically the main (and actually only) argument that a plugin is "derivative work" is that it is calling platform code. IMO that's a misconception. I just <a href="http://www.webmaster-source.com/2009/01/29/why-theyre-wrong-wordpress-plugins-shouldnt-have-to-be-gpl/#IDComment30044608" rel="nofollow">commented on the topic elsewhere</a>, so I'll simply quote myself here: :-) <blockquote>Calling WP functions is essentially executing code, not deriving from it. You build every software in the context of some knowledge, and in case of WP plugins it is the knowledge about the WP API. That doesn't mean you derive your plugin's functionality from that of WordPress. That would be a ridiculous statement, no matter the lines of code. It would mean that interfacing with 3rd party software is "deriving" from it. Or that coding a PDF reader from scratch is work derived from Adobe's PDF code, just because you rely on the PDF format definition (which IS your interface in that case).</blockquote> The point is, <strong>plugins are not derivative work</strong> (except they are indeed a variation of some WP code, and are not merely interfacing with it), even if they are <em>dependent work</em>. I'm not a lawyer though... W-Shadow, basically the main (and actually only) argument that a plugin is “derivative work” is that it is calling platform code. IMO that’s a misconception. I just commented on the topic elsewhere, so I’ll simply quote myself here: :-)

Calling WP functions is essentially executing code, not deriving from it. You build every software in the context of some knowledge, and in case of WP plugins it is the knowledge about the WP API. That doesn’t mean you derive your plugin’s functionality from that of WordPress. That would be a ridiculous statement, no matter the lines of code. It would mean that interfacing with 3rd party software is “deriving” from it. Or that coding a PDF reader from scratch is work derived from Adobe’s PDF code, just because you rely on the PDF format definition (which IS your interface in that case).

The point is, plugins are not derivative work (except they are indeed a variation of some WP code, and are not merely interfacing with it), even if they are dependent work.

I’m not a lawyer though…

]]> By: W-Shadow http://hackadelic.com/making-money-with-wordpress-plugins-mixing-the-gnu-license-with-others/comment-page-1#comment-3550 W-Shadow Sat, 08 Aug 2009 12:02:56 +0000 http://hackadelic.com/?p=472#comment-3550 You make a good point, but it doesn't adress the question of whether plugins are "derivative works". If they are, they still have to be GPL-licensed even if not distributed together with WordPress. You make a good point, but it doesn’t adress the question of whether plugins are “derivative works”. If they are, they still have to be GPL-licensed even if not distributed together with WordPress.

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