Question

I’m looking to start a open source project with a friend and we were discussing open source licenses but neither of us really understand the vague and unclear terms and conditions of the licenses.

We are fine with:

• Distribution
• Creation of derivative works

But do not want:

• Sale of our work
• Sale of derivative works
• Use of our work without attribution in any form

Can you guys recommend any Open Source licenses that fulfill those criteria?

Answer 1

It isn’t possible to put this restriction on your code and still count as “open source”, at least under the widely accepted open source definition.

The relevant paragraph:

1. Free Redistribution

The license shall not restrict any party from selling or giving away the software as a component of an aggregate
software distribution containing programs from several different
sources. The license shall not require a royalty or other fee for such
sale.

i.e. if you want to count as open source, you have to allow others to sell your software either in its current form or as a derived / aggregate work.

If you want to be open source but still want a commercialisation option, one option is to release your software under a dual license, with one license being copyleft (like the GPLv3) and the other being a proprietary license. Others can then use your software under the terms of the GPL, but if they want to incorporate your software into a closed source software product they will need to buy your proprietary license.