GPL
A strict "copyleft" open-source license ensuring that any software derived from GPL code must also be released openly under the exact same GPL terms.
What it is
The GPL forces code to stay free. If you incorporate or modify GPL-licensed code into your own application and distribute it, you are legally required to make your entire application's source code publicly available under the GPL. This prevents companies from taking open-source tools, modifying them, and locking them behind proprietary commercial walls.
When you would use it
You use the GPL when you want to guarantee your open-source project remains free forever and actively prevent corporations from monetizing your code in closed-source products.
Common operations
- Licensing the Linux kernel to ensure all improvements are shared back to the community.
- Forcing downstream users to open-source their derivative works.
Related terms
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