[Cryptography] What is going on with TrueCrypt?

[Sidney Markowitz]

ianG wrote, On 1/06/14 3:26 pm:
> I have a feeling that this thread has already sunk to a
> GPL-versus-the-world crusade.  Before responding, and allowing pause for
> reflection, can someone post a current link to the license, so both
> sides can be considered?

Here are the links for the previous two versions of license. Aside from any
other problems with the license, the Readme.txt files make no provision for
applying the Version 3.1 license that comes with TrueCrypt 7.2 to TrueCrypt
7.1a, which comes with the Version 3.0 license. The only difference between
them is that the license for 7.1a requires a link to get the original code
from truecrypt.org to appear in any documentation and in the splash-screen,
about box, etc. Does that mean a fork of 7.1a (7.2 removes all encrypt code)
has to contain an obsolete link to truecrypt.org?

The new version 3.1 license that is part of the last TrueCrypt 7.2 is here:
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/warewolf/truecrypt/7.2/License.txt

The version 3.0 license:
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/warewolf/truecrypt/master/License.txt

This might be a better way to phrase what I was trying to say, which has
nothing to do with "GPL-versus-the-world".

Reading the license I get the impression that the author intends to require
similar restrictions to the GPL with the additional restriction that nobody
make money from derived code (so no commercial derivatives or forks); that it
was not written by a lawyer and so may be full of unintended implications;
that the intended restrictions would prevent someone forking it if they want
their project to have a BSD type license; that the attempt to prevent for-fee
use and other perhaps sloppily written clauses would prevent someone who wants
to fork with added code under GPL from doing so. I'm left wondering if there
is a license that someone who wants to fork can reasonably use.

I intended to point out that there might be problems forking the project under
any license, with GPL being only the most obvious one with which there would
be a problem.

  Sidney Markowitz
  http://sidney.com