[mkgmap-dev] Distributing mkgmp.jar

Fri Jun 7 15:28:27 BST 2013

Felix Hartmann <extremecarver at gmail.com> writes:

> Am I right, that If I want to offer mkgmap.jar unchanged for download 
> (well zipped)
> I can do this, as long as I include the LICENSE file?
>
> I want to add a script to my maps, that automatically downloads 
> mkgmap.jar if not found, for gmapsupp.img creation.
> So for right now, I put mkgmap.jar plus license file onto my server 
> (http://openmtmbmap.org/mkgmap.zip)

IANAL and TINLA :-)

The license is GPLv2.  So you may distribute binaries (which I see a jar
as) if you either

  also distribute the source

  make a written offer to distribute the source

The conventional wisdom is that the written offer clause is best avoided
(as carrying obligations into the future).  So the easy thing is to put
a source .tar.gz (from which the binary jar was built) on the site as
well, which very clearly satisfies your obligations, even if people
choose to ignore it (see last paragraph below).

For reference, here are the relevant bits of section 3:

3. You may copy and distribute the Program (or a work based on it,
under Section 2) in object code or executable form under the terms of
Sections 1 and 2 above provided that you also do one of the following:

    a) Accompany it with the complete corresponding machine-readable
    source code, which must be distributed under the terms of Sections
    1 and 2 above on a medium customarily used for software interchange;
    or,

    b) Accompany it with a written offer, valid for at least three
    years, to give any third party, for a charge no more than your
    cost of physically performing source distribution, a complete
    machine-readable copy of the corresponding source code, to be
    distributed under the terms of Sections 1 and 2 above on a medium
    customarily used for software interchange; or,

    c) - omitted, not relevant - 

    If distribution of executable or object code is made by offering
    access to copy from a designated place, then offering equivalent
    access to copy the source code from the same place counts as
    distribution of the source code, even though third parties are not
    compelled to copy the source along with the object code.
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