The MASM32 SDK License

[bluedevil]

Dear friends;

We should all know/understand that License MATTERS. So hutch-- had published his own MASM32 SDK License. If you didn't, please spare some time and read it.

The MASM32 Licence

The MASM32 SDK is licenced freeware available to any programmer who wishes to either learn or write 32 bit Microsoft Assembler. All of the software in the MASM32 SDK is copyright (c) software that cannot be purchased, sold, re-licenced, attached or bundled with any form of software whatsoever.

This licence for the MASM32 SDK supercedes all earlier versions of the licence. This licence is dated the 26th of December 2015 and it or its successor will be included in any later distributions of the MASM32 SDK.

Licence Compliance.
The MASM32 licence affords the user a range of rights in producing and distributing code that the user has written using the SDK. To obtain these rights, the user must be willing to fully comply with the MASM32 licence. If the user is not willing to fully comply with the licence, then they have no right of use of any part of the MASM32 SDK. If a right of use is not extended, it remains reserved.

Extent of Liability from use of the MASM32 SDK.
Users of the MASM32 SDK must be willing to accept the full and unconditional responsibility for the software that they write using the MASM32 SDK. Under no circumstances is the SDK, the owners of the software contained in the SDK or the authors of any binaries or source code in the SDK subject to any form of legal liability for any problems, lack of suitability, damage or financial loss that arises from use of software written using this SDK. Any problems that arise with use of software created with the MASM32 SDK must be taken up with the author of the software, not the SDK that the author has used to create the software.

If a user is within a jurisdiction that excludes this disclaimer of any form of liability whatsoever, do not use this software. Noting that this SDK cannot be either purchased or sold, if any jurisdiction locally overrides this disclaimer, the full extent of financial damages is contained in the cost of the SDK. Any person or party who has paid for the software contained in the MASM32 SDK has violated the licence for the SDK and has no right to use it.

Definition of illegal software.
The MASM32 SDK is legal mainstream software and cannot be used to create any form of illegal software whatsoever. The definition of "illegal software" for the purposes of the content of this licence refers to the software produced with the SDK, not the stated intent of the author. The definition includes while not being limited to software for hacking purposes, transmission of either virus or trojan content and/or infection(s) and any software that performs actions prohibited by the Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA). Any such software is deemed to be illegal software for the purposes of the content of this licence.

What you CAN do with the MASM32 SDK ?
You can write your own software using the SDK without being subject to any form of royalty whatsoever and you may distribute your software in any manner you see fit including selling your software.

1. Any software that you write using the MASM32 SDK is your private property with unconditional rights of ownership.
2. You have the non-exclusive right to include assembled/compiled code from the MASM32 SDK in your software.

The MASM32 SDK does not require any of the following conditions.
(a) having to acknowledge the origin of the code.
(b) having to extend credit(s) to any person or SDK for the use of that code.
(c) having to publish your code by using assembled/compiled code from the MASM32 SDK.

The definition of "assembled/compiled" code in this context is source code contained in the MASM32 SDK and library code contained in the MASM32 SDK that is or can be used in an assembled application written using the MASM32 SDK. The same definition applies to building applications using an object module compatible C compiler.

If it suits your requirement you may acknowledge that the software was written using the MASM32 SDK as long as the software is legal software in the jurisdiction that it is either written in or distributed in.

What you CANNOT do with the MASM32 SDK.
1. The MASM32 SDK is not an item of trade or commerce. It cannot be either purchased or sold.
2. The MASM32 SDK cannot be re-licenced or made subordinate to any other form of licence.
3. None of its components or source code are redistributable.
4. You cannot use the MASM32 SDK to write software for Non-Microsoft Operating Systems.
5. You cannot use the MASM32 SDK to write any form of illegal software.
6. The SDK does not authorise the use of the Microsoft Trademark in your software or claims that your software is certified by Microsoft.

Who can use the MASM32 SDK ?
The licence extends to any private individual, organisation, educational institution, Government Department and any Company and/or Corporation for their personal/internal use and it can be used to develop and distribute or sell software for the Windows Operating System.

Who cannot use the MASM32 SDK.
Any person, party or entity that undertakes any form of legal action whatsoever against the SDK, its authors, the owners and/or copyright holders of any software contained in the SDK is licenced to completely and unconditionally remove the software from their computer(s) and nothing else. Retention of the software under these circumstances is a violation of the terms and conditions of the licence.

Why is the MASM32 SDK licenced in this manner ?
From its origin in 1998, the MASM32 SDK has been subject to many attempts to compromise its true freeware status and this extends to attempts to commercialise the SDK, plaigarise parts of its content for resale and attempts to absorb it under alternative and incompatible licencing systems that restrict the rights of the user of the SDK. To protect the SDK from any of the attempts to compromise its integrity, it is Copyright (c) software that cannot be exploited in any of the mentioned methods.

The MASM32 SDK is true freeware written by programmers for programmers so that they can realise the full power of the Windows Operating System without being subject to any additional conditions or external interests. The SDK has been designed as enabling technology to extend the capacity and range of programmers interested in learning and writing Microsoft assembler for Microsoft Operating Systems.

Independent and exclusive licence for the MASM32 SDK.
The licence for the MASM32 SDK is a completely frestanding and independent licence that is not subject to any other form of external licence whatsoever. The licence for the MASM32 SDK cannot be modified, re-licenced or absorbed under any other licencing system whatsoever and functions to the exclusion of any other form of external licence.

Exclusion of open source projects and software.
The MASM32 SDK cannot be used to create open source software or any other form of software under any form of licence that requires the user of the MASM32 SDK to surrender the rights they are afforded under the MASM32 licence. In particular the MASM32 licence completely excludes projects licenced under the GNU organisation's published GPL licence and/or variants.
   
Steve Hutchesson
for the MASM32 SDK
1998-2015

[zedd151]

I have seen this just after it was originally posted. After two months, I am still wondering what was the point that you were trying to make here?

Still wondering...

[zedd151]

I have moved this topic to the "Masm32" board. It seemed more appropriate, than "The Workshop", given it is regarding the license of the Masm32 SDK.

[zedd]

Further about the Masm32 SDK Licensing and the use of the Microsoft binaries included in the Masm32 SDK:
https://masm32.com/board/index.php?topic=11360.0

Topic closed.