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1 webcvs 1.1 <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//IETF//DTD HTML 2.0//EN">
2     <HTML>
3     <HEAD>
4 webcvs 1.2 <TITLE>The Free Software Definition - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation (FSF)</TITLE>
5 webcvs 1.1 <LINK REV="made" HREF="mailto:webmasters@www.gnu.org">
6     </HEAD>
7     <BODY BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#000000" LINK="#1F00FF" ALINK="#FF0000" VLINK="#9900DD">
8 webcvs 1.2 <H3>The Free Software Definition</H3>
9 webcvs 1.1
10     <A HREF="/graphics/philosophicalgnu.html"><IMG SRC="/graphics/philosophical-gnu-sm.jpg"
11     ALT=" [image of a Philosophical Gnu] "
12     WIDTH="160" HEIGHT="200"></A>
13    
14     [
15 joy 1.4 <A HREF="/philosophy/free-sw.hr.html">Croatian</A>
16     | <A HREF="/philosophy/free-sw.nl.html">Dutch</A>
17 webcvs 1.1 | <A HREF="/philosophy/free-sw.html">English</A>
18     | <A HREF="/philosophy/free-sw.fr.html">French</A>
19 lmiguel 1.6 | <A HREF="/philosophy/free-sw.hu.html">Hungarian</A>
20 rms46 1.7 | <A HREF="/philosophy/free-sw.id.html">Indonesian</A>
21 webcvs 1.1 | <A HREF="/philosophy/free-sw.it.html">Italian</A>
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29     ]
30     <P>
31    
32 webcvs 1.2 We maintain this free software definition to show clearly what must be
33     true about a particular software program for it to be considered
34 rms 1.5 free software.
35 webcvs 1.2
36     <P>
37    
38 paulv 1.3 ``Free software'' is a matter of liberty, not price. To understand the
39     concept, you should think of ``free'' as in ``free speech,'' not as in
40     ``free beer.''
41 webcvs 1.1 <P>
42 rms 1.5 Free software is a matter of the users' freedom to run, copy,
43 webcvs 1.1 distribute, study, change and improve the software. More precisely,
44     it refers to four kinds of freedom, for the users of the software:
45     <P>
46    
47     <UL>
48     <LI>The freedom to run the program, for any purpose (freedom 0).
49     <LI>The freedom to study how the program works, and adapt it to your needs
50     (freedom 1). Access to the source code is a precondition for this.
51     <LI>The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help your neighbor
52     (freedom 2).
53     <LI>The freedom to improve the program, and release your improvements
54     to the public, so that the whole community benefits.
55     (freedom 3). Access to the source code is a precondition for this.
56     </UL>
57    
58     <P>
59     A program is free software if users have all of these freedoms.
60     Thus, you should be free to redistribute copies, either with or
61     without modifications, either gratis or charging a fee for
62     distribution, to <A HREF="#exportcontrol">anyone anywhere</A>. Being
63     free to do these things means (among other things) that you do not
64     have to ask or pay for permission.
65    
66     <P>
67     You should also have the freedom to make modifications and use them
68     privately in your own work or play, without even mentioning that they
69     exist. If you do publish your changes, you should not be required to
70     notify anyone in particular, or in any particular way.
71    
72     <P>
73     The freedom to use a program means the freedom for any kind of person
74     or organization to use it on any kind of computer system, for any kind
75     of overall job, and without being required to communicate subsequently
76     with the developer or any other specific entity.
77    
78     <P>
79     The freedom to redistribute copies must include binary or executable
80 rms 1.5 forms of the program, as well as source code, for both modified and
81     unmodified versions. It is ok if there is no way to produce a binary
82     or executable form, but people must have the freedom to redistribute
83     such forms should they find a way to make them.
84 webcvs 1.1
85     <P>
86     In order for the freedoms to make changes, and to publish improved
87     versions, to be meaningful, you must have access to the source code of
88     the program. Therefore, accessibility of source code is a necessary
89     condition for free software.
90    
91     <P>
92     In order for these freedoms to be real, they must be irrevocable as
93     long as you do nothing wrong; if the developer of the software has the
94     power to revoke the license, without your doing anything to give
95     cause, the software is not free.
96    
97     <P>
98     However, certain kinds of rules about the manner of distributing free
99     software are acceptable, when they don't conflict with the central
100     freedoms. For example, copyleft (very simply stated) is the rule that
101     when redistributing the program, you cannot add restrictions to deny
102     other people the central freedoms. This rule does not conflict with
103     the central freedoms; rather it protects them.
104    
105     <P>
106     Thus, you may have paid money to get copies of GNU software, or you
107     may have obtained copies at no charge. But regardless of how you got
108     your copies, you always have the freedom to copy and change the
109     software, even to <A HREF="/philosophy/selling.html">sell copies</A>.
110    
111     <P>
112     ``Free software'' does not mean ``non-commercial''. A free program
113     must be available for commercial use. Commercial development of free
114     software is no longer unusual; such programs are free commercial
115     software.
116    
117     <P>
118     Rules about how to package a modified version are acceptable, if they
119     don't effectively block your freedom to release modified versions.
120     Rules that ``if you make the program available in this way, you must
121     make it available in that way also'' can be acceptable too, on the
122     same condition. (Note that such a rule still leaves you the choice of
123     whether to publish the program or not.)
124    
125     <P>
126     In the GNU project, we use <A HREF="/copyleft/copyleft.html">
127     ``copyleft''</A> to protect these freedoms legally for everyone. But
128     <A HREF="/philosophy/categories.html#Non-CopyleftedFreeSoftware">
129     non-copylefted free software</A> also exists. We believe there are
130     important reasons why <A HREF="/philosophy/pragmatic.html"> it is
131     better to use copyleft</A>, but if your program is non-copylefted free
132     software, we can still use it.
133    
134     <P>
135     See <A HREF="/philosophy/categories.html">Categories of Free Software
136     (18k characters)</A>
137     for a description of how ``free software,'' ``copylefted software'' and
138     other categories of software relate to each other.
139    
140     <P>
141     Sometimes government <A NAME="exportcontrol">export control
142     regulations</A> and trade sanctions can constrain your freedom to
143     distribute copies of programs internationally. Software developers do
144     not have the power to eliminate or override these restrictions, but
145     what they can and must do is refuse to impose them as conditions of
146     use of the program. In this way, the restrictions will not affect
147     activities and people outside the jurisdictions of these governments.
148    
149     <P>
150     When talking about free software, it is best to avoid using terms like
151     ``give away'' or ``for free'', because those terms imply that the
152     issue is about price, not freedom. Some common terms such as
153     ``piracy'' embody opinions we hope you won't endorse. See <A
154     HREF="/philosophy/words-to-avoid.html">Confusing Words and Phrases
155     that are Worth Avoiding</A> for a discussion of these terms.
156     We also have a list of <A HREF="/philosophy/fs-translations.html">translations
157     of "free software"</A> into various languages.
158 webcvs 1.2
159     <P>
160    
161     Finally, note that criteria such as those stated in this free software
162     definition require careful thought for their interpretation. To
163     decide whether a specific software license qualifies as a free
164     software license, we judge it based on these criteria to determine
165     whether it fits their spirit as well as the precise words. If a
166     license includes unconscionable restrictions, we reject it, even if we
167     did not anticipate the issue in these criteria. Sometimes a license
168     requirement raises an issue that calls for extensive thought before we
169     can decide if the requirement is acceptable, including discussions
170     with a lawyer. When we reach a conclusion, we sometimes update these
171     criteria to make it easier to see why certain licenses do or don't
172     qualify.
173    
174     <P>
175    
176     If you are interested in whether a specific license qualifies as a
177     free software license, see our <A
178     HREF="/philosophy/license-list.html"> list of licenses </A>. If the
179     license you are concerned with is not listed there, you can ask us
180     about it by sending us email at <A
181     HREF="mailto:licensing@gnu.org">&lt;licensing@gnu.org&gt;</A>.
182    
183 webcvs 1.1 <HR>
184    
185     <H4><A HREF="/philosophy/philosophy.html">Other Texts to Read</A></H4>
186    
187     <P>
188     Another group has started using the term <A
189     HREF="free-software-for-freedom.html"> open source</A> to mean
190     something close (but not identical) to "free software".
191    
192     <HR>
193    
194     Return to <A HREF="/home.html">GNU's home page</A>.
195     <P>
196     FSF &amp; GNU inquiries &amp; questions to
197     <A HREF="mailto:gnu@gnu.org"><EM>gnu@gnu.org</EM></A>.
198     Other <A HREF="/home.html#ContactInfo">ways to contact</A> the FSF.
199     <P>
200     Comments on these web pages to
201     <A HREF="mailto:webmasters@www.gnu.org"><EM>webmasters@www.gnu.org</EM></A>,
202     send other questions to
203     <A HREF="mailto:gnu@gnu.org"><EM>gnu@gnu.org</EM></A>.
204     <P>
205 webcvs 1.2 Copyright (C) 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 Free Software Foundation, Inc.,
206 webcvs 1.1 59 Temple Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111, USA
207     <P>
208     Verbatim copying and distribution of this entire article is
209     permitted in any medium, provided this notice is preserved.<P>
210     Updated:
211 paulv 1.3 <!-- timestamp start -->
212 rms46 1.7 $Date: 2001/06/04 13:10:27 $ $Author: lmiguel $
213 paulv 1.3 <!-- timestamp end -->
214 webcvs 1.1 <HR>
215     </BODY>
216     </HTML>

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