Re:How to build an open source business
by ThePhysicist on Saturday October 03, 2020 @07:05AM
(#24671181)
I think (A)GPL is great for standalone software, i.e. tools that don't get integrated into a codebase but used as an external service. Databases or your search engine are great examples for that.
For anything that should be integrated into the codebase of your customers I'd recommend a weaker license like MIT or BSD, as most companies shy away from integrating GPL libraries into their codebases for fear of contamination.
For this cases there is the LGPL.
Re:How to build an open source business
by rusticpenn on Saturday October 03, 2020 @04:28PM
(#24674462)
Is it not possible to have multiple licenses? AGPL or commercial?
Re:How to build an open source business
by orlandohill on Saturday October 03, 2020 @05:13PM
(#24674712)
Yes. This is sometimes called dual-licensing, but a less ambiguous term is public-private licensing.
Re:How to build an open source business
by mooreds on Saturday October 03, 2020 @06:52AM
(#24671123)
That is an interesting perspective. I would be that your product has well defined interfaces that would make integration with a commercial product easy. Plus I guess you could always dual license.
Re:How to build an open source business
by macklemoreshair on Saturday October 03, 2020 @11:18AM
(#24672581)
typesense looks really impressive. good stuff.
I've been working on an open source search engine for a few years (https://github.com/typesense/typesense) that's far more easier than Elasticsearch for a number of use cases and is a great alternative to Algolia.
I was faced with this same dilemma when I started out: how do I protect future commercial interests without stifling the spirit of open source? Eventually I just chose good old GPL and decided against BSL-like licenses for a number of reasons.
GPL is a fine balance. When you are small, your greatest risk is not an existing or future competitor: it is death by obscurity. To that end, you don't want to slow down adoption by choosing a license that screams "$$$" or makes somebody's legal team uncomfortable. In any case, if a big company wants to copy you, they will and can with the resources they can throw at it.