Copyright terms explanation required

[Melch]

Hi

I have been looking for a library to do FEA analysis with beam elements and it looks like OpenSees will work well for what I want to do.

I have a query on the copyright terms available here: https://opensees.berkeley.edu/OpenSees/copyright.php.

I am just not sure what the term "for internal purposes only" means. Can I as a consultant use this software to do calculations that will be presented in a report for a client?

The Regents grants permission, without fee and without a written license agreement, for (a) use, reproduction, modification, and distribution of this software and its documentation by educational, research, and non-profit entities for noncommercial purposes only; and (b) use, reproduction and modification of this software by other entities for internal purposes only.

[mhscott]

Yes, you can use OpenSees to perform engineering calculations that you will present to a client.

You cannot redistribute or modify the code to sell as a commercial product without obtaining a license.

[Melch]

Thanks for your quick response to my query mhscott.

[ponczek]

Unfortunately, Berkeley changed the license agreement recently. Now, one needs to obtain a commercial license when earning revenue from the use of OpenSees.

[cbrinck]

I have the same question. ponczek, that’s not how I read the license. I’m inclined to believe mhscott’s response, unless something changed since February, as he is actively involved with OpenSees development. I think “internal use” just means you’re not selling the code itself. Running calculations and sharing the results of those calculations for profit is OK as far as I understand it.

My next question would be, is this going to ever change? I’d like to start developing a framework of specialized engineering tools around OpenSees to aid me at work. I’d also like to invest my personal time becoming more proficient with OpenSees. But I don’t want to put that effort in if OpenSees is going to switch to a proprietary license down the road that severely restricts my ability to use that skill set in my daily work.

[mhscott]

ponczek, your interpretation is incorrect. You can use OpenSees internally to earn revenue from engineering services. Build tools around it to aid ad work, that's fine. You cannot re-sell or re-distribute the code for commercial use, unless you get a license, the terms of which are not that onerous.

[ponczek]

Some months ago I contacted UC Berkeley (https://ipira.berkeley.edu/our-team#OTLStaff) to clarify these issues (e.g. what is internal use?). I was planning to use OpenSees as simulation software in my engineering office. After an exchange of several e-mails and clarifications, they agreed that using OpenSees commercially (i.e. in my engineering projects) does not require a license.

Unfortunately, on August 1, 2022, I received an e-mail from them, that UC Berkeley has updated its OpenSees non-exclusive commercial-use license to include project based use of OpenSees. Based on this update, a license is required when earning revenue from the use of OpenSees!

In other words, the update now requires a license when using OpenSees on commercial engineering projects. That's the official response I got from UC Berkeley.

[cbrinck]

I guess I'm surprised they can charge for it, since maintenance funding came from the National Science Foundation:
https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAwa ... ID=0402490
https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAwa ... ID=9701568
That doesn't seem right if federal taxpayer dollars funded it - but what do I know? I may do some more digging with UC Berkley and the NSF to get to the bottom of this. I can't seem to get a clear answer here.

[MarcoG]

Hi, I'm a new user of OpenSees.
I work in a software house where we produce structural calculation programs, typically intended for civil engineers.
We have our own historical solver, developed starting from SAP IV.
To test our solver I recently developed a simple model, two-story plane frame with 4 columns and two beams, with a seismic input consisting of an accelerogram.
It is my intention to solve this model with our solver and with OpenSees, in order to compare the results. Furthermore I would like to distribute with our software even the only tcl input file together with a pdf summarizing the comparison; the aim is to allow anyone to independently replicate the test.
I have read the license (https://opensees.github.io/OpenSeesDocu ... cense.html) and searched in this forum for the license terms. I kindly ask for confirmation that what I have exposed is fully respectful of the OpenSees license.

[cbrinck]

I e-mailed PEER and this is part of the response they gave me today:

"The intent of the copyright is to allow anybody to use and do with what they want the code with the exception of software developers wishing to include opensees code in software they sell. It was drafted by UC lawyers. The intent by removing the word distribution from the second condition, was to ensure commercial companies do not distribute the software without obtaining a license to do so, and allow them to do everything else. In short, internal use by yourself and others to utilize OpenSees to produce numbers for your work is permitted."

[ponczek]

However, PEER is not the copyright owner. It is "The Regents of the University of California" as stated in the copyright. Contact them and you will get a different answer. PEER is probably not aware of the recent changes. That is part of the response I received from Berkeley: "This license agreement has been evolving with the market, for example, with the advent of commercializing OpenSees in the form of a subscription SaaS." And moreover: "The update now requires the license. If you are earning revenue from the use of OpenSees then that is a commercial use of OpenSees and you therefore need the license."

[fmk]

By PEER cbrinck means myself, the original developer of OpenSees and the person who last updated the copyright. The above license requirement for companies offering the opensees application as an online service you pay for, just mentioned by ponczek, is required as the UC lawyers have determined that making money from giving people online access to services that utilize OpenSees code is just the modern equivalent of selling somebody an application that runs on their computer that requires OpenSees source code to build that application.

Users of OpenSees who use OpenSees or their own modified version of OpenSees to perform simulations as part of their work are freely permitted to use it.

And MarcoG, if you are just providing your customers with a tcl script that is totally fine to do. It is a text file you are providing them and not an application.

[ponczek]

Dear Frank, I am very pleased to hear that.

Unfortunately, UC Berkeley told me the opposite: I would need a licence to use OpenSees in my engineering office, provided I get paid to use it. This is the case, for example, when I run a simulation with OpenSees as part of a project.

I am a self-employed engineer and would love to use OpenSees in my engineering office. However, the response I received from UC Berkeley prevents me from using OpenSees. The licence fees they want to charge me for using OpenSees are excessive. I could afford a commercial version of SAP2000 for such a price.

I would really appreciate any feedback or support from your side on this issue.