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Date: Sun, 21 Jun 2015 13:53:50 -0700
From: "C.D. Reimer" <chris@cdreimer.com>
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To: Laura Creighton <lac@openend.se>
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Subject: Re: Do I need license to release the Python version of old BASIC games?
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On 6/21/2015 1:00 PM, Laura Creighton wrote:
> In a message of Sun, 21 Jun 2015 12:32:46 -0700, "C.D. Reimer" writes:
>
>> Do I need to release my scripts under a license? If so, which one?
> You should, because if you don't you could pop up some day and
> assert copyright and sue the hell out of people who use your code,
> which means that many people won't touch it until you license it.

I want to strike a right balance between respecting the 1987 copyright 
of the book, which much of the code was either in the public domain or 
submitted to Creative Computing magazine, and protecting my own code 
that uses the video output from the book. I'm leaning towards the MIT 
license as many of games were developed in university computer labs and 
freely shared among computer users.

For a copyright blast from the past, consider Bill Gate's open letter to 
hobbyists stealing Microsoft Basic in 1976.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Letter_to_Hobbyists

Thanks,

Chris R.