So I've got a JavaScript script that uses extremely modified pieces of another script. That script has an GNU General Public License. Do I need to use that license too or can I choose my own and just reference to that other script?
A:
If you want to use your own licence, you have to rip out all the bits that actually came from the GPL'd script. This is because the GPL is a "strong copyleft" (or as some would call it, "viral") licence that requires anything that it's merged with to be licensed under GPL also.
Chris Jester-Young
2010-01-25 19:46:15
Thank you for your answer. I've adjusted over 95% and added a whole lot more. Is this sufficient or do I need to change every character?
jerone
2010-01-26 10:03:40
Basically, is it likely that the original author is going to try to claim ownership of the rest? The crux of it is that you need to have _full_ copyright ownership of the code before you can use a non-GPL licence.
Chris Jester-Young
2010-01-26 15:06:20