Paul Krill
Editor at Large

Black Duck helps with GPL changes

analysis
Aug 6, 20072 mins

Black Duck Software announced Monday version 4.4 of protexIP/development, a platform for software compliance management that now accommodates changes reflected in the new GNU General Public License (GPL) v3 license. The release features capabilities to make it easier to incorporate code governed by the new license or manage internal policies regarding use of code governed by new licensing parameters, Black Duck

Black Duck Software announced Monday version 4.4 of protexIP/development, a platform for software compliance management that now accommodates changes reflected in the new GNU General Public License (GPL) v3 license.

The release features capabilities to make it easier to incorporate code governed by the new license or manage internal policies regarding use of code governed by new licensing parameters, Black Duck said. More than 300 open source projects have published code under the GPL v3, according to Black Duck.

GPL v3 is not compatible with certain earlier versions of the GPL and developers must carefully assemble applications, paying attention to GPL license versions that apply to various open source components being utilized, Black Duck said.

Protex can be used to identify and manage components governed by GPL v2 and v3 as well as Lesser GPL v2 and v3.

GPL v3 was released on June 29 by the Free Software Foundation, with improvements in areas such as compatibility with other free software licenses.

Version 4.4 also offers an enhanced knowledge base featuring open source and vendor-added code software components including detailed licensing information for more than 140,000 components. The knowledge base provides information on patent license agreements, patent retaliation clauses and anti-digital rights management clauses.

Also featured in the new version are improved administration, enhanced remote management and the ability for users to add comments about specific license requirements. For example, legal advisors can annotate requirements to explain a company’s interpretation.

Black Duck is demonstrating version 4.4 this week at the LinuxWorld Conference & Expo in San Francisco. The new product is available September 3.

Paul Krill

Paul Krill is editor at large at InfoWorld. Paul has been covering computer technology as a news and feature reporter for more than 35 years, including 30 years at InfoWorld. He has specialized in coverage of software development tools and technologies since the 1990s, and he continues to lead InfoWorld’s news coverage of software development platforms including Java and .NET and programming languages including JavaScript, TypeScript, PHP, Python, Ruby, Rust, and Go. Long trusted as a reporter who prioritizes accuracy, integrity, and the best interests of readers, Paul is sought out by technology companies and industry organizations who want to reach InfoWorld’s audience of software developers and other information technology professionals. Paul has won a “Best Technology News Coverage” award from IDG.

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