Starting Noncommercialfamous projects that started noncommercial
I’ve been rereading notes and books about the early Internet, free software, and open source. I’m struck by how many foundational projects began life under licenses that limited commercial use:
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NSFNet’s acceptable use policy prohibited “[u]se for for-profit activities” and “[e]xtensive use for private or personal business”.
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NSCA Mosaic and Netscape Navigator were free for personal and non-profit use, with commercial licenses for sale
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Linux had a license that included “You may not distribute this for a fee, not even ‘handling’ costs.”
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Ghostscript used the Aladdin license early on
Think of any more?
I’m pulling together a list as a reference page.
Your thoughts and feedback are always welcome by e-mail.