GNU FDL (quick summary)

[Ron Hale-Evans <rwhe@...>]

OK, here's my summary of what our GNU FDL'ed rulesets should do that
they have mostly not been doing:

1. If you modify the document, add a History section if there was not
   one there already, list the original authors, etc. if they were not
   listed already, then discuss what was changed.

2. If you distribute an "opaque" version (a file that can't be edited
   easily by users, such as a PDF file), include a "transparent"
   version too (a user-editable file, such as text or HTML), or just
   list a URL where others can get one.

That's about it.  If you want details, read the FDL excerpts below.
If you want even more detail, read the FDL itself:

  http://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl.html

Ron H-E

p.s. As to whether reformatting a ruleset (using a different font,
etc. but not altering the text or graphics) qualifies as creating a
"modified version", I don't think that merits expanding the History
section and so on.  The decision should probably be left up to the
original author, but I can't see it as being a problem in most cases.

*****

[Here's the text about the History section. --Ron]

1. APPLICABILITY AND DEFINITIONS
...
A "Modified Version" of the Document means any work containing the
Document or a portion of it, either copied verbatim, or with
modifications and/or translated into another language.
...

4. MODIFICATIONS

You may copy and distribute a Modified Version of the Document under
the conditions of sections 2 and 3 above, provided that you release
the Modified Version under precisely this License, with the Modified
Version filling the role of the Document, thus licensing distribution
and modification of the Modified Version to whoever possesses a copy
of it. In addition, you must do these things in the Modified Version:
...
I. Preserve the section entitled "History", and its title, and add to
it an item stating at least the title, year, new authors, and
publisher of the Modified Version as given on the Title Page. If there
is no section entitled "History" in the Document, create one stating
the title, year, authors, and publisher of the Document as given on
its Title Page, then add an item describing the Modified Version as
stated in the previous sentence.


[Here's the text about user-editable copies. --Ron]

A "Transparent" copy of the Document means a machine-readable copy,
represented in a format whose specification is available to the
general public, whose contents can be viewed and edited directly and
straightforwardly with generic text editors or (for images composed of
pixels) generic paint programs or (for drawings) some widely available
drawing editor, and that is suitable for input to text formatters or
for automatic translation to a variety of formats suitable for input
to text formatters. A copy made in an otherwise Transparent file
format whose markup has been designed to thwart or discourage
subsequent modification by readers is not Transparent. A copy that is
not "Transparent" is called "Opaque".
...
If you publish or distribute Opaque copies of the Document numbering
more than 100, you must either include a machine-readable Transparent
copy along with each Opaque copy, or state in or with each Opaque copy
a publicly-accessible computer-network location containing a complete
Transparent copy of the Document, free of added material, which the
general network-using public has access to download anonymously at no
charge using public-standard network protocols. If you use the latter
option, you must take reasonably prudent steps, when you begin
distribution of Opaque copies in quantity, to ensure that this
Transparent copy will remain thus accessible at the stated location
until at least one year after the last time you distribute an Opaque
copy (directly or through your agents or retailers) of that edition to
the public.

-- 
         Ron Hale-Evans ... rwhe@... & rwhe@...
           Center for Ludic Synergy, Seattle Cosmic Game Night, 
Kennexions Glass Bead Game &  Positive Revolution FAQ: http://www.ludism.org/
Home page & Hexagram-8 I Ching Mailing List: http://www.apocalypse.org/~rwhe/