The GPL License
Most people don’t actually look at the license the software they install is distributed with. They just assume there is no problems with it and guess what they’re allowed to do, but we can say that this really isn’t a good idea. If you go against the license you could face huge problems, which is why you should always do your research first of all. In this article we want to make things a bit easier for you so we’re going to explain the terms of the license included with our Ares download.
This piece of software has been distributed under the GPL license. This is really popular and is used by many different tools on the internet. The license was originally created by an American many years ago, who did it to help protect content creators from people who want to misuse their information. This is the first license created that is purely “copyleft”, a term used to describe a situation where copyright legislation can be used against itself. This may be quite a confusing statement to grasp but we’ll tell you more later.
Perhaps the biggest feature of it is that the source code of the application must be available to the general public. This is a requirement, you must be able to obtain the source on the official website so take a look at it if you’re a developer, otherwise it may not be necessary. Another interesting part you should be aware of is that you are able to distribute the software yourself with modifications you’ve made if you decide to do so, but you’re also forced to use this same license. You do not have permission to distribute it under something else, so be careful if you decide to go ahead and take this route.
Distributing the files of our Ares free download is another interesting thing to talk about. You are allowed to share it with other people if you want to. Most people expect they can do this with open source software but don’t expect to be able to profit from it. The terms of GPL actually state that you’re allowed to sell it for yourself if you really want to! It may not be very profitable though considering you can download the software from our website completely free of charge, you’ll have trouble finding people to pay the money. Of course you don’t actually own any of the patents or trademarks so you aren’t able to sue other companies for trademark infringement. Everyone has the same freedom and rights as you so they can do whatever they want with it too.
In conclusion, the majority of the GPL is written about the distribution and modification of the data. As an ordinary end user there isn’t much that actually concerns you, you can just go ahead and install it onto your computer by using the link on our website without worrying about if you’ve violated the guidelines. Just remember that if you decide to distribute it to other people that you send a copy of the GPL license and also include the source code of the program so that others are also able to edit the source if they choose to. This is the beauty of open source software, everyone has the freedom and accessibility to work and contribute to projects. Go ahead and install Ares Galaxy now if you’re interested in this.