This is a a short course that introduces researchers (doctoral students, postdocs, staff researchers and PIs) to the essentials of open-source software (OSS) licensing for research and educational purposes. The course duration should be about 3 hours when taught live, and we will also produce an online version for self-study.
The three lessons in this course cover essential topics related to using, licensing, and collaborating with open-source software, data, and content in a research and education contexts. Each section includes relevant subtopics and practical concerns, focusing on key licensing concepts, choosing appropriate licenses, navigating institutional processes, and fostering open-source collaboration in research teams.
The dilemma presented in the vignette above is an example of how you might first encounter open-source software: someone on the internet posted their code on a website... Can you use it? Can you incorporate it into your own code? Can you modify it? Can you redistribute it? Should you credit the author?
Once you have experienced the joy of reusing someone else’s open-source software, and it has benefitted your research or educational endeavors, you may ask: how do I share my own code with the world? After all, we seek to have impact through our work, and you now see clearly that sharing can have impact! What do you need to know to license your own code, data, or other works?
As you engage more with open-source software, you realize that most projects are developed collaboratively. It’s true of your research, too. This is the top prize: working with others under an open development model. What do you need to know about licensing joint work?
The lessons in this course cover: how to use licensed works; how to license your own material (code, data, other content); and how to work with others and license together. Read on!
About¶
The GW Open Source Program Office (OSPO) supports the GW community in their use of open-source tools, helps researchers comply with Open Science policies, and trains users in open-source development. The OSPO aims to help foster a culture of open collaboration and knowledge-sharing, aligned with the research and education missions of the university.
Prof. Lorena A. Barba is the Faculty Director of GW’s OSPO. She has many years of engaging with open-source software, including as member of the Board of Directors of NumFOCUS, a nonprofit supporting open-source scientific computing tools (2014–2021); as founding editor of The Journal of Open Source Software and Associate Editor-in-Chief until 2021; and as one of the inaugural Jupyter Distinguised Contributor (2020). She is an internationally recognized expert on increasing transparency and reproducibility in research through open-source tools and practices.
GW’s Open Source Programs Office is generously supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.