[Ma-linux] Open-source question

[Myriam Abramson]

You might know that there is a lot of talk about the US government
using open-source software to save money on licensing fees and
requiring in its new contracts that the software be "open-source and
government-owned." 

I don't quite understand what that means. If a company wins a
contract to develop software under those terms, it's still copyright
protected but can be open-sourced by the government to other
companies, correct? It's not open-source like the stuff on
SourceForge, correct? However, if I develop software as a government
employee or as a government contractor, the software is
non-copyrightable, so does that make it open-source like in
SourceForge? I'm confused ... Can somebody clarify this? Przemek?


                                   myriam