Practice vocabulary for OSS license compliance: CLA, DCO, GPL copyleft, dual licensing, and the inbound equals outbound principle.
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What does CLA stand for and what is its purpose in OSS governance?
A CLA (Contributor License Agreement) is a legal document contributors sign granting the project (or foundation) rights to use, relicense, or distribute their contributions.
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What is the DCO (Developer Certificate of Origin)?
The DCO is a lightweight alternative to a CLA. Contributors add a 'Signed-off-by' line to commits, certifying they have the right to submit the code under the project's license.
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What is the 'inbound = outbound' principle in OSS licensing?
'Inbound = outbound' means contributions are accepted under the same license the project uses for distribution. This prevents license incompatibility and simplifies governance.
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What is 'dual licensing' in open source?
Dual licensing releases software under two licenses simultaneously — typically an open source license (like GPL) for the community and a commercial license for companies that want to avoid copyleft obligations.
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Why is GPL copyleft considered a 'risk' in some OSS governance contexts?
GPL copyleft requires that derivative works must also be licensed under GPL. For companies with proprietary products, incorporating GPL code can force them to open-source their entire codebase — a significant governance and legal risk.