The PHP License

Hi list,

Below statement is borrowed from PHP License here[1]:

The name "PHP" must not be used to endorse or promote products
derived from this software without prior written permission. For
written permission, please contact group@php.net.


Does this mean that saying this website is "Powered by PHP" is illegal
without a written permission?


P.S.
1. http://www.opensource.org/licenses/php.php

On Nov 28, 2007 9:39 AM, AmirBehzad Eslami <behzad.eslami@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi list,
>
> Below statement is borrowed from PHP License here[1]:
>
> The name "PHP" must not be used to endorse or promote products
> derived from this software without prior written permission. For
> written permission, please contact group@php.net.
>
>
> Does this mean that saying this website is "Powered by PHP" is illegal
> without a written permission?
>
>
> P.S.
> 1. http://www.opensource.org/licenses/php.php
>

No, that's fine to state. Using it to power a website is not
redistributing PHP, only using it as a platform. What this means in
the context of that portion of the license, related to the whole,
could be reworded as such:

"You can redistribute PHP in any way, shape, or form you want, so
long as you don't use the name PHP anywhere in the name of the package
you're distributing."

However, if you're creating software which uses the PHP engine or
is programmed in the PHP language, you'll need permission prior to
using "PHP" in the name. Examples of software that use that are
phpBB2, phpFox, et cetera.

--
Daniel P. Brown
[office] (570-) 587-7080 Ext. 272
[mobile] (570-) 766-8107

If at first you don't succeed, stick to what you know best so that you
can make enough money to pay someone else to do it for you.

AmirBehzad Eslami wrote:
> Hi list,
>
> Below statement is borrowed from PHP License here[1]:
>
> The name "PHP" must not be used to endorse or promote products
> derived from this software without prior written permission. For
> written permission, please contact group@php.net.
>
>
> Does this mean that saying this website is "Powered by PHP" is illegal
> without a written permission?

no. if you say "Powered by PHP" you are merely endorsing and/or promoting PHP
itself and notsome derivative.

the PHP group don't want you to create a fork of PHP and then go name it PHPFork
or something like that.

they don't like it when applications written in PHP use PHP in the application name,
the reason being it gives the impression to the unwashed masses that said application
is a product of or endorsed by the PHP group ... take for instance PHPBB - given the
ammount of flak that project has had with regard to security flaws you can understand
why the PHP group would like to distant itself from said project.

that said the enforcement of this license requirement is patchy at best ... as the
project named PHPBB illustrates, which makes me wonder in how far this particular
requirement is enforcible and/or legally binding.

basically if you have an application written in PHP and want to share it with the world
it shouldn't be hard enough to come up with a catchy name that doesn't include 'PHP'
in the name ... heck you were creative to write the code in the first place!

rgds,
Jochem

>
>
> P.S.
> 1. http://www.opensource.org/licenses/php.php
>