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I came across this license:

/**
 * The author disclaims copyright to this source code. In place of
 * a legal notice, here is a blessing:
 *
 * May you do good and not evil.
 * May you find forgiveness for yourself and forgive others.
 * May you share freely, never taking more than you give.
 */

Can a programmer really renounce the ownership of their source code?

dan-klasson
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    Also depends on jurisdiction. there's the saying: "Programming is like sex. Make one little mistake and support it for the rest of your life." In some jurisdictions, copyright cannot be disclaimed. – Chris Travers Mar 08 '13 at 04:19
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    Why the downvote? – dan-klasson Mar 08 '13 at 04:26
  • See How to release project under public domain? and What's the difference between WTFPL, CC0, and public domain? – CodesInChaos Mar 08 '13 at 14:57
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    I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it is about legal questions of intellectual property. –  Mar 03 '15 at 02:12
  • @MichaelT: I suggest you read the rules of this site before you vote to close. Particularly, you might want to check out the last bullet point. – dan-klasson Mar 03 '15 at 04:21
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    @dan-klasson the question of "does it have the same legal bearing" is one that can only be answered by lawyers, which we are not. Legal assistance is specifically listed as off topic in the [help/on-topic], and I believe this falls firmly in the realm of ask a lawyer. –  Mar 03 '15 at 04:39
  • @MichaelT: Yes that is correct, but how exactly is this legal assistance? Where do I mention that I am planning to use this code? My question is purely phrased out of curiosity. And any question about software licensing has to do with legality. Therefor by your definition we wouldn't be allowed to ask any question about licensing. So you are obviously wrong. – dan-klasson Mar 03 '15 at 04:46
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    @dan-klasson there are licensing questions such as "how do I use an MIT license in a GPL project" or "what am I required to provide when using a library that is AGPL licensed" and the like. Those are questions that do not involve interpretation of the licenses but rather following the instructions. On the other hand, questions that involve the legal interpretation of some text is something that can only be answered by lawyers. This question is asking for the legal interpretation of some license. The only reasonable answer is "talk to a lawyer in your jurisdiction" (the answers will vary). –  Mar 03 '15 at 15:39
  • This question is right on the edge of the "legal advice" part of on/off topic. However, licensing questions must be about "how do I license my project given my goals X, Y and Z?" to be on-topic, which test this question fails. Regardless, this is an old question, you got your answer two years ago, be happy with that. –  Mar 03 '15 at 15:58
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    "Can a programmer really renounce the ownership of their source code?" - talk to a lawyer in your jurisdiction. It varies from place to place (see the problem with public domain source code). You may wish to read Why the Public Domain Isn’t a License - note that that is written by a law firm familiar with the issue and applied to US copyright code. –  Mar 03 '15 at 17:14

1 Answers1

7

Disclaiming copyright is the same as placing it in the public domain, and means there is no copyright, so there are no restrictions whatsoever. Technically, disclaiming copyright isn't a license, since a license states the terms under which you may make copies legally.

They are not the same, but there would be little practical difference in some jurisdictions.

Michael Shaw
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