y0da900
03-23-2008, 10:32 AM
Saw a front page discussion on fatwallet about homemade digital antennas, and this was one of the links in the thread:
http://www.digitalhome.ca/ota/superantenna/
Towards the bottom it shows a gray block describing in limited detail its protection under the GPL. It claims protection regarding the design, schematics, and diagrams. I havn't read through much of the GPL yet, but if people are already successfully registering designs for protection under it, this endeavor might have gotten a whole lot easier.
Edit: More info.
Right from the GPL FAQ: http://www.fsf.org/licensing/licenses/gpl-faq.html#GPLOtherThanSoftware
Can I use the GPL for something other than software?
You can apply the GPL to any kind of work, as long as it is clear what constitutes the “source code” for the work. The GPL defines this as the preferred form of the work for making changes in it.
It seems as though mechanical designs could easily be covered by this, but the release document would have to be written almost identically to a patent and contain examples of what is often termed "preferred embodiment" in the patent.
http://www.digitalhome.ca/ota/superantenna/
Towards the bottom it shows a gray block describing in limited detail its protection under the GPL. It claims protection regarding the design, schematics, and diagrams. I havn't read through much of the GPL yet, but if people are already successfully registering designs for protection under it, this endeavor might have gotten a whole lot easier.
Edit: More info.
Right from the GPL FAQ: http://www.fsf.org/licensing/licenses/gpl-faq.html#GPLOtherThanSoftware
Can I use the GPL for something other than software?
You can apply the GPL to any kind of work, as long as it is clear what constitutes the “source code” for the work. The GPL defines this as the preferred form of the work for making changes in it.
It seems as though mechanical designs could easily be covered by this, but the release document would have to be written almost identically to a patent and contain examples of what is often termed "preferred embodiment" in the patent.