Draft 1 of GNU GPL Version 3

I just found out about it by subscribing to the mailing list a while ago. (It's very low volume; this is the first thing they sent me after confirmation a few months ago. I almost forgot I was subscribed! Recommended!) The preamble follows:

The licenses for most software are designed to take away your
freedom to share and change it. By contrast, the GNU General Public
License is intended to guarantee your freedom to share and change free
software--to make sure the software is free for all its users. We,
the Free Software Foundation, use the GNU General Public License for
most of our software; it applies also to any other program whose
authors commit to using it. (Some Free Software Foundation software
is covered by the GNU Lesser General Public License instead.) You
can apply it to your programs, too.

When we speak of free software, we are referring to freedom, not
price. Our General Public Licenses are designed to make sure that you
have the freedom to distribute copies of free software (and charge for
this service if you wish), that you receive source code or can get it
if you want it, that you can change the software or use pieces of it
in new free programs; and that you know you can do these things.

To protect your rights, we need to make requirements that forbid
anyone to deny you these rights or to ask you to surrender the rights.
These restrictions translate to certain responsibilities for you if you
distribute copies of the software, or if you modify it.

For example, if you distribute copies of such a program, whether
gratis or for a fee, you must give the recipients all the rights that
you have. You must make sure that they, too, receive or can get the
source code. And you must show them these terms so they know their
rights.

Developers that use the GNU GPL protect your rights with two steps: (1)
assert copyright on the software, and (2) offer you this License which
gives you legal permission to copy, distribute and/or modify the software.

For the developers' and author's protection, the GPL clearly explains
that there is no warranty for this free software. If the software is
modified by someone else and passed on, the GPL ensures that recipients
are told that what they have is not the original, so that any problems
introduced by others will not reflect on the original authors'
reputations.

Some countries have adopted laws prohibiting software that enables users
to escape from Digital Restrictions Management. DRM is fundamentally
incompatible with the purpose of the GPL, which is to protect users'
freedom; therefore, the GPL ensures that the software it covers will
neither be subject to, nor subject other works to, digital restrictions
from which escape is forbidden.

Finally, every program is threatened constantly by software patents. We
wish to avoid the special danger that redistributors of a free program will
individually obtain patent licenses, in effect making the program
proprietary. To prevent this, the GPL makes it clear that any patent must
be licensed for everyone's free use or not licensed at all.

The precise terms and conditions for copying, distribution and
modification follow.

Source: GPLv3 Draft — GPLv3

Compare that with version 2's preamble, from 15 years ago....

I haven't had the time to yet, so I really can't form an opinion. What I've heard is that public websites use modded GPLv3 might have to release it, and that it's anti-DRM and anti-software-patent.

The thing we all must remember is that the vast majority of GPLed code is under "version 2 or later" meaning that people have an option with existing code. But some maintainers may switch to v3, and some new projects may use v3. I think a significant amount of software will be "version 3 or later" within a year after the GPL's release. I also think that it's very possible that these projects will fork as a result, if v3 is as restrictive as I've heard.

Anyway, I will compare the two preambles (and parts of the rest if I'm not clear on something), and perhaps post some comments over there.

PS: I'll post pictures of each stage of the "Evergreen on Civic" issue when it's all over. For those following the happenings thru other channels, the latest event is that my dad bought a chainsaw.