[ohf-licenses] Is there such a thing as non-free open hardware?

[Terry Hancock]

Weird question, but I started thinking after looking at this website:

http://www.otherpower.com/17page1.html

This page gives *complete* instructions for building a 17' wind turbine.
   It would be completely possible to:

1) Build the windmill
2) Examine all of the design considerations made in designing it
3) Distribute windmills made from the plan to friends
4) Modify the plans, publish your own design, and make windmills from it

However, AFAIK, the plans are "all rights reserved". You can't just
republish the plans.

But most of the interesting things you'd want to do with the information
doesn't require a copyright license.

The company who hosts the site sells kits which make the assembly easier
(for example, they'll sell you permanent magnets of the right size,
shape, and strength). Although technically, you *could* acquire these
things elsewhere, it seems obvious that they would actually make *more*
money if the plans were more widely distributed (by releasing them under
a more open license).

So, I have considered trying to encourage the company to go with a
free-licenses for their plans.

But it made me wonder -- are they already "open hardware" even if the
plans are "non-free"?

What do you think? What advantages are there to a more liberal license?
How would we encourage that? Could it be "liberated" by making a
trivially-modified set of instructions based on the design (but not the
design document)? (I'm not necessarily encouraging that, just
questioning the legal status of it).

Cheers,
Terry


-- 
Terry Hancock (hancock at AnansiSpaceworks.com)
Anansi Spaceworks http://www.AnansiSpaceworks.com