The final conclusion for OpenACS developers would then be:
Don't check out ACS 4.6+ code at all, as Ben already mentioned???
We should definitely have a page on the new OpenACS site, that exactly explains what would be permitted and what wouldn't, because aD's FAQ is a bit blury on that part...
The rather blury FAQ part:
If I look at ACS source code covered under ADPL and apply general ideas and concepts learned from this review in products I develop, am I bound by ADPL?
No. The terms of ADPL would extend to direct or closely similar reimplementations of ACS, in Java or any other language. This would extend to close similarities at any layer of ACS: in the data model, application logic, page flow, or presentation layer.
We don't mind if you get and apply ideas from ACS, but we would want close approximations/copyrightable expressions to honor the terms of ADPL. We would rely on the extensive body of legal precedents under which we could assert our rights under ADPL to enforce this. Bottom line, if you have concerns about whether you'd be violating ADPL, please get in touch with us and ask us about specific instances.
What strikes me here is the first "No", although they basically mean "Yes", because a good lawyer would probably know how to detect close similarities...
And then: What does "honor the terms of ADPL" mean??? Especially in combination with the nicest of all sentences: "We would rely on the extensive body of legal precedents under which we could assert our rights under ADPL to enforce this."
Hope we find a solution on that...
