Sunday, September 22, 2024

Is ‘fair source’ software a viable alternative to open source?

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Sunday, September 22, 2024

Image Credits: TopVector via Getty

Software company Sentry recently introduced a new license category called "fair source," which has been adopted by a half dozen other businesses.

Paul Sawers describes how Sentry developed this approach after it was criticized for describing one of its developer tools as "open source." The company is hoping the "fair source" concept can bridge the worlds of open and closed software, allowing companies to align themselves with open software development while allowing more flexibility around business models.

So what does "fair source" actually mean? While there are different licenses, common requirements include making the code publicly available to read and converting to a true open source license after a set period of time.

Keep reading to see what else TechCrunch is covering this weekend. And happy first day of fall!

Weekend news and opinion

Image Credits: Paul / Flickr under a CC BY 2.0 license.

Here are the EU's biggest antitrust actions against tech companies: Regardless of whether you support the EU's approach to regulation, there's no denying that it's reshaped the global tech landscape. Natasha Lomas rounds up some of the biggest (e.g., most expensive for tech companies) things the EU has done, from suing Apple over taxes to taking Google to task over its approach to advertising. Read more

Moksha is a gamified meditation device: After launching on Kickstarter last year, Moksha is now available to the general public. Lauren Forristal has been using the metal pendant for the past month and says it makes meditation and breath work less boring. Read more

Shelf connects users based on their favorite movies, TV shows, and music: Jagmeet Singh profiles Shelf, a new social network that focuses on your media consumption. CEO Jad Esber argues that this reflects a broader shift in online culture, "away from posting selfies to here's what I'm reading, watching, screenshots of the reviews of my movies." Read more

What else we're reading

📕 Fifteen years after Google Ventures' inception, Fortune profiles the venture firm, which operates independently of its namesake company. That said, CEO and managing partner David Krane was employee 84 at Google and even recalls a one-question job interview with Google co-founder Sergey Brin. Read more

📘 Also, Ars Technica provides a handy overview of how an unrelated company ended up with the Flappy Bird trademark. Read more