If the GPL seems like a bad idea from the standpoint of commercialism, consider the surge of successful open source software projects—they are indicative of a system that does indeed work. This success has evolved for two reasons. First errors in the code itself are far more likely to be caught and quickly fixed under the watchful eyes of peers. Second, under the GPL system, programmers can release code without the fear of being sued. Without that protection, people may not feel as comfortable to release their code for public consumption.

Most projects don’t start out as full-featured, polished pieces of work. They may begin life as a quick hack to solve a specific problem bothering the programmer at the time. As a quick-and-dirty hack, the code may not have a sales value. But when this code is shared and consequently improved upon by others who have similar problems and needs, it becomes a useful tool.

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