[ohf-licenses] Total newb asks annoying questions

[Kurt Forsberg]

It's funny that Mesa-Boogie amplifiers should be a topic on this list
right after I subscribe.  I service them frequently.  I fixed one
today, in fact.  Their service literature is terrible.  Among other
things, there are no reference designators for passives.  I've often
wondered if their designs are intentionally obfuscated to hide their
origins.

Hello!

My name is Kurt.  I live in Tacoma, WA and I've been a user and
proponent of open source software for almost a decade.  However, being
that none of the code I write is worth sharing, I've never bothered
myself with reading software licenses thoroughly.  Once I get a
paragraph or two in, my brain turns into banana cream pudding and my
reading comprehension regresses 25 years back to preschool.

For a few years I've been working on my pet electronics projects.  I'm
at the point now that I want to get a few of them out there.  For the
first time I have to read a license.  I've read as much of a few
licenses as I could handle in one or two sittings.  The GPL and CC
licenses just don't seem well suited for electronics design.  The TAPR
license is nice, but I don't think it's the one for me, only for the
simple reason that I don't want to associate myself with an
organization that is trying to sell a CF to IDE adapter for $49.  I
don't know.... seems a bit spendy for essentially nothing more than
connecters and wire.  A colleague pointed me in the direction of the
OHF.  I understand that the OHPL is still being drafted, but it seems
like the license for me.  Are there others out there though?

My designs are all very simple -- nothing remotely as ambitious as the
OGP.  I'm not developing IP cores.  A few of my designs incorporate
microcontrollers, but a majority of them can be built with off the
shelf parts with no chip programming required.  I'm trying keep them
as accessible to the average DIYer as possible and do all the data
manipulation in software.

An example of one of my projects is an AC current sensor that can be
connected to a PC via serial.  Please don't point out to me how
archaic RS-232 is, and how it will be phased out soon.  9600 bps is
ample bandwidth for collecting power usage data.  A simple web
interface and cacti to put up pretty graphs will run just fine on that
old P-II collecting dust in the closet, which I'm sure has at least
one serial port.  I'm trying to keep it cheap.  USB adds another $10
or more.

When I'm designing a PCB layout, I am conscientious of the manufacture
process.  I etch my own double sided PCBs frequently.  Through hole
plating is not a practical option, so I place vias in places where
they will not interfere with component placement if they are executed
using wires or grommets.  I may also create a design with
professionally manufactured PCBs in mind, but when a board is
predominantly surface mount this is not usually necessary.

I have a lot of questions, some of which I should probably ask a
lawyer, but since this is just a hobby (for now) I can't really
justify (or afford) that kind of money.  I get the feeling that this
isn't the right place to ask my questions, but I'm going to go for it
anyway.

How do I go about protecting my designs?  Is bundling a copy of the
license with the design data enough, or do I need to acquire something
from another party (ie a notary public) to establish ownership?

I know this question has nothing to do with licensing, but I can't
seem to find anyone who knows the answer, not even a former employer
at a hardware manufacturer...

I would distribute PCB layouts of my designs for those who want to
etch PCBs themselves, but not everyone has the means (or confidence)
to etch a PCB.  I would like to make professionally etched PCBs
available for purchase, or maybe DIY kits or even fully assembled
product.  This would make me a manufacturer and that opens a whole new
can of worms.  Now I need to jump through some FCC hoops.  Or do I?
Are there other hurdles to distributing finished product?  Are there
measures that could exempt a design from FCC requirements?

Would the OHPL reserve my rights to distribution of finished product?
I don't want a license that will prevent anyone from acquiring design
data and building them or restrict their applications, but I would not
want another party manufacturing one of my designs and selling
finished product for profit without my explicit consent.

I guess that's enough for now.  I hope someone can clarify some of
this for me, or at least point me to how I can figure out on my own.

Thanks,

Kurt Forsberg