Maintain a list of works which are freely usable, by any one, for any use, without any condition.
These works could be software, technical documents, pictures, music, books...
The works must be available in "source" form, to enable any one to modify and to improve them.
The works must be available at no cost on the Internet.
Selected Highlights
SqLite : a Public Domain source code for a SQL database system.
Allegro : a game programming library.
See our full list!
Licenses and Public Domain
You will find a lot of web sites with "Public Domain Software", but realy a very few are "Public Domain" under international laws. Most are Freeware, Shareware or Open Source software.
Let's explain the difference :
A "Freeware" is a software that you can use at no cost. It comes with a Copyright statement and license.
A "Shareware" is a software that you try at no cost, and then, if you like it, you must pay for it. It comes with a Copyright statement and license.
An "Open Source" software is a software of which you can get its sources at no additional costs and you can redistribute the sources. (Some people also calls this kind of software "Free Software".) It comes with a Copyright statement and license.
A "Public Domain" software is a software (with or without sources) that has not anymore any legal owner and which is not protected by the international "Copyright" laws.
A "Public Domain" software has no license and no copyright statement (like "Copyright (c) 2008 The Whoow.org Company") in place, there is a sentence like this one: "This work is dedicated to the public domain".
A Copyrighted software will fall into the "Public Domain" 70 years after the death of their authors.
A software without license and without a "dedicated to the public domain" sentence is a Copyrighted software.
The license of a software is the list of terms under which the author (the "Copyright holder") agrees to let you use or copy his software. Some licenses are very permissive (like the Zlib/Libpng) and others are very restrictive (like Windows "EULA").