I have gotten several requests for a more open license for the Blank Canvas Gmail Signatures add-on, and would like to discuss this with the community at large.

The contents of this discussion DO NOT represent the current license. This is a discussion about proposed changes to the license, but the current license still applies.

Some people have requested that I make the add-on completely "free software" under the GNU License. This doesn't mean "free of charge" (it's already free of charge and always will be.) This means that you would be free to do whatever you want (expect place restrictions on others) with the the source without having to ask for permission. Under this license, you could take the add-on, make modifications, rename it, and red-distribute it as your own. This is a model that I am not comfortable with for several reasons that I will get into later.

I would be much more comfortable with something closer to open source with guidelines, meaning that you could study the the add-on, modify it, etc, but with certain basic restrictions. This is what I would propose. I am looking for feedback.

Proposed license structure (does not currently apply):

1. The add-on will always remain free of charge (currently applies)
   
2. The source code would be publicly available and could be modified by anyone
3. Modifications would have to be released through the official add-on
4. Modifications could NOT be re-distributed elsewhere or under any other name
   
5. Highly visible credit would be given to all contributors along with links to their site(s) or project(s)

I know this is somewhat self-serving, but I would like to remain the distributor of the add-on rather than having 1.42 million different versions floating around the web. My concern is (knowing how little time I have to actually code) that someone else will have more time to code, will implement changes, and will essentially take over the project completely, which would make me very sad. I would rather let people make modifications and submit them, then incorporate the best of the best into the official add-on. In my mind, this would accomplish several things:

For the average user:

1. One centralized version with increased stability
   
2. No need to research which version is the best for them etc
3. More configurable options and features in one add-on

For other developers:

1. The ability to fix bugs and contribute new features
2. Clear "contributor" credit and links to their site(s) and project(s)
   

For me as the author:

1. Maintained/increased traffic to this site
   • I use this traffic to help test and improve my engines (such as these forums)
   • Increased awareness of this company which is essential to my ability to support my family
     
2. Maintained "Blank Canvas" branding on the add-on

This model would essentially make this site the official repository of information about the add-on (the actual distribution point still being the official Firefox add-on page), with highly visible credit to all contributors. From my perspective, it seems fair given all of the work I put into this add-on. I've put a good bit of time into this, and would hate to see all that washed away for nothing.

Thoughts?