Software Downloads
The SoniPy project
is established as a public-domain, community-based project so it can
evolve as its components evolve. It uses only public-domain software
and, although it is being initially developed on Macintosh OSX, the aim
is to eventually release for all major hardware platforms.
The
Copyright under which a
particular software component is released into the public domain
remains in tact; it is unaltered by being released by, or in
association with, the SoniPy project. See the COPYRIGHT
menu above for more details.
We recognise three
types of public-domain software:
- That which is
released as a complete downloadable click-and-install package. For
Python, this implies that any extension libraries are already compiled
binaries for a user's particular platform/operating system
configuration,
- That which is
released as downloadable source code that requires platform-specific
compilation and/or installation, and
- Software of our
own design and/or software that has required significant modification
such
- the
conversion of source code to Python extension libraries, or
- the
debugging, updating or compiling of code not supported by the original
authors or maintainers*
In the case of
category 1, we provide links for direct download from the originating
website. For categories 2 and 3, we aim to provide downloadable
packages with the original copyright holder's consent and copyright
documentation. Category 3 sotware may be released with appropriate
acknowledgements and new copyright notices, if appropriate.
There is a diverse
degree-of-difficulty in building and/or installing these third-party
tools. This degree-of-difficulty exponentiates when a module has
dependencies which themselves need to be build. Unsuccessfully trying
to pick through the obtruse output of a C++ compiler whilst attempting
to compile a module's library is enough to discourage some people from
using public-domain software. And even more so when those dependencies
have dependencies of their own.
* This is
exacerbated by the unscrupulous behaviour of a few software writers who
sketch out an idea and put it inot the public doamin as quickly as
possible, with all the copyright provisions attached, and then sit back
whilst others debug and turn the sketch into a workable tool. Because
this is the public-domain, the tools are "free" but not necessarily
free of time-wasting self-agrandisment.
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