= REUSE Booster helps Free Software projects with licensing and copyright =
[ Read online: https://fsfe.org/news/2021/news-20210609-01.fi.html ]
REUSE is a set of best practices to make Free Software licensing much
easier. It helps developers with simple guidelines to declare their
copyright and conditions for code re-use and provides help documents and
low-threshold tools to get the job done. With REUSE Booster, we start to
give direct support for Free Software projects.
Since its beginning, the aim of REUSE [1], an initiative led by the Free
Software Foundation Europe (FSFE), has been to make licensing and
copyright drastically easier for developers, especially those without
legal experience and assistance. It is fair to say that this goal has
already been achieved.
REUSE offers standardised ways to mark all files in a project with their
respective license and copyright. For developers, creating Free Software
and communicating their conditions for code re-use are easier than ever
before. REUSE offers a tutorial and FAQ, as well as the REUSE helper
tool and the API to automate once manual processes. We are continuously
working on improving all of these. But we won't stop here.
== Introducing REUSE Booster ==
With REUSE Booster, we go one step further. We invite Free Software
projects to register for getting help [2] by the FSFE's legal experts.
As the name suggests, this will boost the process of adopting the best
practices as well as general understanding of licensing and copyright.
Accepted projects will be onboarded in a kick-off workshop in which the
process and typical questions are clarified. Afterwards, each project
will receive an individual evaluation that reveals potential challenges
on their path to full REUSE compliance. If unforeseen problems arise,
there will be direct contact persons that can provide guidance. Last but
not least we will share practical suggestions on how to maintain a
stable licensing status.
The FSFE already provides similar support for all projects in the Next
Generation Internet Zero (NGI0) project [3]. As consortium partners, we
help developers to resolve licensing and copyright uncertainties and
avoid legal pitfalls. Furthermore, many of them adopt the REUSE best
practices to streamline their compliance. We now build on this practical
experience and enable other projects to benefit from it. This is made
possible by REUSE sponsors [4] like Siemens and individual support by
FSFE volunteers and supporters [5].
If your Free Software project wants to get support to become REUSE
compliant, register [6] before 8 July 2021. Please also spread the word
and inform other developers about this opportunity.
Discuss this [7]
1: https://reuse.software
2: https://reuse.software/booster
3: https://fsfe.org/activities/ngi/index.fi.html
4: https://reuse.software/supporters/
5: https://my.fsfe.org/support
6: https://reuse.software/booster
7: https://community.fsfe.org/t/698
== About the Free Software Foundation Europe ==
Free Software Foundation Europe is a charity that empowers users to
control technology. Software is deeply involved in all aspects of our
lives; and it is important that this technology empowers rather than
restricts us. Free Software gives everybody the rights to use,
understand, adapt and share software. These rights help support other
fundamental freedoms like freedom of speech, press and privacy.
The FSFE helps individuals and organisations understand how Free
Software contributes to freedom, transparency and self-determination. We
enhance users' rights by abolishing barriers to Free Software adoption,
encourage people to use and develop Free Software, and provide resources
to enable everyone to further promote Free Software in Europe.
https://fsfe.org