Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani
Work Integrated Learning Programmes Division
First / Second Semester 2023-2024
Mid-Semester Test
(EC-2 Regular)
Course No. : SESAPZG587
Course Title : Open Source Software Engineering
Nature of Exam : Closed Book
Weightage : 30% No. of Pages = 2
Duration : 1.5 Hours No. of Questions = 6
Date of Exam : 07/10/2023 (FN)
Note to Students:
1. Please follow all the Instructions to Candidates given on the cover page of the answer book.
2. All parts of a question should be answered consecutively. Each answer should start from a fresh page.
3. Assumptions made if any, should be stated clearly at the beginning of your answer.
4. Answers should be to the point. Do not include unnecessary explanations.
Q.1. Answer the below in one or two sentences.
a> What is the primary goal of a strong copyleft license like the GPL?
b> What is the main advantage of using a weak copyleft license like the LGPL
for a library or a software component?
c> Which license do you suggest for an open-source project where the
requirement is to encourage broad adoption and inclusion of OSS code in
proprietary projects?
d> I want to protect my work [3D models and designs]. What do you suggest?
e> A developer wants to propose code changes to an existing open-source
project. How should he proceed?
[5M]
Q.2. An organization decides to use an open-source alternative due to the costly
licensing fee of the proprietary software.
Open-source software is generally free to use, modify, and distribute, and it is
often provided at no monetary cost. This means that you can download, install,
and use open-source software without having to pay a licensing fee. Can you
elaborate on the costs associated with respect to the use of OSS?
[5 M]
Q.3.
Fill the below table with suitable answers based on the general characteristics of
OSS, public domain software, and freeware.
Aspect Open-Source Public Domain Freeware
Software Software
Licensing related
Redistribution
rights
Source code
availability
Support and
community
Examples
[6 M]
Q.4.
Fill in the missing data[suitable answers] related to dual-licensing and open-
core models under the different aspects mentioned.
Aspect Dual Licensing Open core model
Licensing approach
Open-source version
Commercial version
Revenue model
Examples
[5 M]
Q.5. Answer each of the below questions in two to three sentences.
a> Under which circumstances could an open-source project decide not to
require CLAs and rely solely on the terms of its open-source license?
b> What are the two main types of CLAs, and in what situations might one
type of CLA be preferred over another type of CLA, or vice versa?
c> Name two companies that are leveraging the benefits of open-source
operating system Linux. What are they doing to sustain and grow?
[6 M]
Q.6. You are a software developer working on a project that aims to create a web-
based content management system (CMS) for small businesses. After placing
the project on GitHub, the project has gained significant traction within the
developer community, and multiple contributors are interested in getting
involved. However, you need to decide on an open-source license for your
project to make it clear how others can use, modify, and distribute the code.
Here are some considerations for choosing an open-source license:
Project Goals: You want to encourage collaboration and contributions from the
developer community to enhance the CMS, but you also want to ensure that the
project remains open source and accessible to small businesses.
Commercial Use: You're open to commercial use of the CMS, as it can help
sustain the project, but you don't want large corporations to exploit the software
without contributing back.
Attribution: You want to receive proper attribution for your work and ensure
that contributors get credit for their contributions.
Derivatives: You're comfortable with allowing others to create derivative
works based on your CMS, but you want those derivatives to be open source as
well.
Licensing Compatibility: You want to choose a license that is compatible with
other open-source licenses to encourage collaboration with other projects.
Community Engagement: You aim to foster a strong and active community of
developers, users, and contributors around the CMS.
Choose an appropriate open-source license for your web-based CMS project
and provide a very brief explanation of your choice, considering the factors
mentioned above.
[3 M]
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