Comprehensive legal framework for the Project Tick ecosystem.
PROJECT TICK GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE
Version 3, 7 April 2026
Copyright (C) 2026 Project Tick <https://projecttick.org/>
Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies of this license
document, but changing it is not allowed.
Preamble
The Project Tick General Public License is a copyright-based reciprocal
software license built on a copyleft model, designed to ensure that
modifications and distributed improvements remain equally shareable by
all recipients. It is intended to ensure that all recipients of a covered Work
have the freedom to access, study, modify, and redistribute that Work under
uniform and non-discriminatory terms. This License is designed to preserve
equal source availability, reciprocal sharing of improvements, and long-term
preservation of user freedoms for all recipients. Where a covered Work is
conveyed in source or object form, the Corresponding Source must be made
available in accordance with the terms of this License. Each contributor grants
a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free patent license covering those patent
claims necessarily infringed by the exercise of the rights granted under this
License with respect to that contributor’s contributions.
The binding terms governing use, modification, operation, and conveyance of
covered Works are set forth below.
PROJECT TICK GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
0. Definitions.
"This License" refers to the Project Tick General Public License, Version 3.
"Work" means any copyrightable software program or portion thereof licensed
under this License.
"You" means any natural or legal person exercising permissions under this
License.
"Operate" means to run, execute, or make the Work available for use, including
to provide its functionality to users through a computer network.
"Recipient" means any person or entity who receives a copy of the Work.
"Modify" means to copy from or adapt all or part of the Work in a manner
requiring copyright permission, other than the making of an exact copy. The
resulting work is called a "Modified Version" or a work "based on" the Work.
"Main Component" means a major essential component (such as a kernel, operating
system, compiler, runtime, or object code interpreter) of the specific
execution environment in which the Work operates.
"Convey" means any propagation of the Work that enables a Recipient to
make or receive copies of it.
"Library Work" means a Work designed primarily to be used by independent works
through linking, importing, or comparable technical means.
"Combined Work" means a work produced by linking, importing, or otherwise
combining a Library Work with an independent work, whether statically or
dynamically.
"Appropriate Legal Notices" means a prominent and reasonably accessible notice
that
(1) displays an appropriate copyright notice,
(2) states that the Work is provided without warranty, and
(3) informs Recipients that the Work is licensed under this License
and how to obtain a copy of it.
1. Source Code and Corresponding Source.
"Source Code" means the preferred form of the Work for making modifications to
it. It includes all files, interface definitions, scripts, build instructions,
and other materials necessary to understand, modify, build, install, and run
the Work in a form reasonably suitable for editing.
"Object Code" means any non-source form of the Work.
Source Code does not include deliberately obfuscated, minified, generated,
encrypted, or otherwise transformed forms that materially impair readability,
auditability, or modifiability unless the corresponding human-readable form is
also provided.
"Standard Interface" means an interface defined by a recognized standards body
or one that is widely used and publicly documented within the relevant software
ecosystem.
"System Libraries" means components that:
(1) are included in the normal distribution of a Main Component such as a
kernel, operating system, compiler, runtime, or object code interpreter;
and
(2) serve only to enable use of the Work with that Main Component or with an
implementation of a Standard Interface.
"Corresponding Source" means all Source Code needed to generate, install, run,
and modify the Work, including build scripts, control files, interface
definitions, and configuration files that are specifically required for those
purposes.
Corresponding Source includes scripts and configuration files specifically
required to build, install, and run the Work itself. It does not include
general-purpose system administration materials, hardware provisioning
materials, or external service management materials that are not part of the
Work.
Corresponding Source does not include System Libraries, general-purpose
development tools, or independent third-party components that are not derived
from the Work and are not required to exercise the rights granted under this
License.
If the Work is conveyed in Source Code form, the Source Code itself constitutes
the Corresponding Source. This License does not require relicensing of
independent works merely aggregated with the Work.
2. Conveying Modified Source Versions.
You may Convey a Modified Version of the Work in Source Code form under the
terms of this License, provided that you comply with all of the following
conditions:
a) The Modified Version must carry prominent notices stating that you have
modified the Work and the date of each modification.
b) The Modified Version must carry clear notices stating that it is
licensed under this License. Such notices may update existing notices to
reflect the modified status of the Work.
c) You must license the Modified Version, as a whole, under this License.
This License is reciprocal and requires that no additional restrictions
be imposed on the rights granted herein.
d) You may not impose any contractual, technical, or legal measures that
restrict, condition, or limit the ability of Recipients to exercise the
rights granted under this License.
e) If the Modified Version includes interactive user interfaces, such
interfaces must display Appropriate Legal Notices, unless the original
Work did not include such notices and the nature of the interface makes
their display impractical.
The mere aggregation of the Work with separate and independent works that
are not derived from the Work does not cause this License to apply to those
independent works, provided that the aggregation does not impose additional
restrictions on the Work.
3. Conveying Non-Source Forms.
You may Convey the Work, including any Modified Version licensed under this
License, in Object Code form, provided that the Corresponding Source is made
available under this License in a manner that is at least as accessible,
timely, and usable as the Object Code itself.
The Corresponding Source must be provided in one of the following ways:
a) Accompanying the Object Code with the Corresponding Source on a durable
physical medium customarily used for software exchange;
b) Accompanying the Object Code with a written offer, valid for at least
three (3) years, to provide the Corresponding Source on a durable
physical medium for no more than the reasonable cost of physical
transfer;
c) Providing equivalent access to download the Corresponding Source from
the same network location, or through clearly documented means
accessible to the relevant Recipients, without additional conditions or
barriers;
d) Providing peer-to-peer conveying, provided that clear instructions are
given indicating how the Corresponding Source may be obtained in a
manner consistent with this License.
Any technical, contractual, or policy-based measure that materially
restricts, delays, or conditions access to the Corresponding Source beyond the
terms of this License constitutes non-compliance. Separable portions of the
Object Code whose source is excluded as System Libraries need not be included
in the Corresponding Source.
3.1 User Products.
If you Convey the Work in Object Code form as part of a User Product,
and the transfer of the User Product conveys possession or control to the
Recipient, you must provide the Corresponding Source and the Installation
Information necessary to install and execute modified versions of the Work
on that User Product.
Installation Information is not required if neither you nor any third party
retains the ability to install modified Object Code on the User Product.
3.2 Network Interaction.
If you modify the Work and use that modified version to provide its
functionality to users interacting with it remotely through a computer
network, you must offer the Corresponding Source of that modified version to
those users under this License and without further restrictions.
The offer must be made through a prominent and reasonably accessible notice
in the relevant user interface, service documentation, or other customary place
through which such users interact with or receive information about the
service.
3.3 Technological Protection Measures.
No covered Work shall be considered part of an effective technological
measure to the extent that such measure is used to restrict the exercise of
rights granted under this License. By Conveying or applying this License to
a Work, you agree not to assert any legal right to prohibit or restrict
circumvention of technological measures where such circumvention is necessary
to exercise the rights granted under this License.
Technical mechanisms designed solely to ensure system integrity,
authenticity, or security are permitted, provided that they do not prevent
Recipients from accessing, modifying, or Conveying the Corresponding Source
under this License.
4. Termination.
You may not Modify or Convey the Work except as expressly permitted under
this License. Any attempt otherwise is void and automatically terminates your
rights under this License. However, if you cease all violations of this
License, your rights under this License are reinstated provisionally with
respect to the relevant copyright holder, unless and until that copyright
holder explicitly and finally terminates your rights. Your rights are
reinstated permanently if the copyright holder fails to notify you of the
violation by reasonable means within sixty (60) days after you cease the
violation. Additionally, if this is the first time you have received notice of
a violation from that copyright holder, and you cure the violation within
thirty (30) days after receiving such notice, your rights are reinstated
permanently. Termination of your rights under this Section does not terminate
the licenses of any parties who have received copies of the Work from you in
compliance with this License.
5. Acceptance Not Required for Possession or Use.
You are not required to accept this License in order to receive, possess, or
run a copy of the Work. The mere act of downloading, receiving, storing, or
executing the Work does not constitute acceptance of this License. Propagation
or Conveyance of the Work that occurs solely as an automatic, incidental, or
passive consequence of receiving a copy through a network or distribution
system does not require acceptance of this License. However, nothing other than
this License grants you permission to Modify or Convey the Work. Any such
action without authorization under this License constitutes copyright
infringement. By Modifying or Conveying the Work, you indicate your acceptance
of this License and all of its terms and conditions with respect to those
actions.
6. Automatic Licensing of Downstream Recipients.
The license granted to Recipients arises solely by operation of this License
and not by virtue of any separate agreement, contract, or policy. Each time you
Convey the Work, the Recipient automatically receives a license directly from
the original licensors to use, Operate, Modify, and Convey the Work, subject to
the terms and conditions of this License. You are not responsible for enforcing
compliance with this License by third parties. An "Entity Transaction" means a
transaction that transfers control of an organization, transfers substantially
all of its assets, merges organizations, or subdivides them. If Conveyance of
the Work results from an Entity Transaction, each party receiving a copy of the
Work also receives the licenses that the predecessor in interest had or could
grant under this License, together with the right to receive the Corresponding
Source, if it is possessed or can be obtained with reasonable effort. You may
not impose any additional legal, contractual, technical, or policy-based
restrictions on the exercise of the rights granted under this License. Any
attempt to do so is void and does not affect the rights of Recipients. Access
to Corresponding Source must not be conditioned on acceptance of terms that
restrict the rights granted under this License.
7. Patents.
A "Contributor" means any copyright holder who licenses the Work under this
License. Each Contributor grants to every Recipient a perpetual, worldwide,
non-exclusive, royalty-free, irrevocable patent license under any patent claims
owned or controlled by that Contributor, to the extent that such claims are
necessarily infringed by exercising the rights granted under this License with
respect to the Contributor’s contributions. This patent license applies only to
patent claims that are necessarily infringed by the Contributor’s
contributions. It does not extend to claims that would be infringed solely
as a result of further modification or combination beyond those contributions.
If you initiate patent litigation against any party alleging that the Work or a
contribution incorporated within the Work constitutes direct or contributory
patent infringement, then any patent licenses granted to you under this License
for that Work shall terminate as of the date such litigation is filed.
You may not enter into any patent agreement, covenant, or arrangement that
imposes discriminatory restrictions on the exercise of rights granted under
this License. Any patent license granted in connection with the Work must
extend equally and non-discriminatorily to all Recipients. Nothing in this
License shall be construed as limiting any defenses to patent infringement that
may otherwise be available under applicable law.
8. Linking and Combined Works.
A Library Work licensed under this License may be conveyed as part of a
Combined Work without causing this License to apply to the independent work as
a whole, provided that the conditions of this Section are satisfied.
The Library Work itself, and any modifications to it, must remain licensed
under this License. If you Convey a Combined Work that includes a Library
Work, you must:
(a) Provide the Corresponding Source of the Library Work and any modifications
to it under this License;
(b) Provide the information and materials necessary to enable Recipients to
modify the Library Work and relink or replace it within the Combined Work
using commonly available tools;
(c) Not impose technical or contractual measures that forbid or materially
interfere with such relinking or replacement.
The independent portions of a Combined Work are not required to be licensed
under this License, provided that they are not derived from the Library Work.
Mere aggregation, inter-process communication, network protocols,
command-line invocation, or use of standard interfaces does not by itself
create a Combined Work.
9. Form of Corresponding Source.
Where Corresponding Source is required under this License, it must be provided
in a form that is complete and reasonably usable for modification,
generation, installation, and operation of the Work using commonly available
tools.
Access to Corresponding Source may not be conditioned on terms inconsistent
with this License.
10. Protection of Contributor Rights.
You may not impose further restrictions on the exercise of the rights
granted under this License. If conditions are imposed on you, whether by court
order, agreement, or otherwise, that contradict the terms of this License, such
conditions do not excuse you from compliance. If you cannot comply
simultaneously with this License and any other obligation, you may not Convey
the Work at all. No agreement or arrangement may retroactively restrict or
revoke the rights granted under this License with respect to any Contributor’s
contributions.
11. Uniform Exercise of Rights.
The rights granted under this License apply equally to all Recipients and
to all fields of endeavor. No further restriction or condition may limit the
exercise of such rights in a manner inconsistent with this License.
For avoidance of doubt, where the Work is used as part of a larger system or
service, this License requires disclosure only of the Work, Modified Versions
of the Work, and Corresponding Source otherwise required by this License. It
does not require disclosure of independent or unrelated components merely
because they are used alongside the Work.
12. Disclaimer of Warranty.
TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, THE WORK IS PROVIDED
"AS IS" AND WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. EXCEPT WHERE OTHERWISE EXPRESSLY
STATED IN WRITING, THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND/OR OTHER PARTIES PROVIDE THE WORK
WITHOUT ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE,
OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY, PERFORMANCE, AND
FUNCTIONALITY OF THE WORK IS WITH YOU. SHOULD THE WORK PROVE DEFECTIVE OR FAIL
TO OPERATE AS EXPECTED, YOU ASSUME ALL COSTS OF NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR,
CORRECTION, OR REMEDIATION.
13. Limitation of Liability.
TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, IN NO EVENT SHALL ANY
COPYRIGHT HOLDER, CONTRIBUTOR, OR ANY OTHER PARTY WHO MODIFIES, CONVEYS, OR
OTHERWISE MAKES THE WORK AVAILABLE BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY DAMAGES OF ANY
KIND, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DIRECT, INDIRECT, GENERAL, SPECIAL,
INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, ARISING OUT OF OR
IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OF, OR INABILITY TO USE, THE WORK, EVEN IF SUCH
PARTY HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.
14. Interpretation of Sections 12 and 13.
If the disclaimer of warranty or limitation of liability set forth in
Sections 12 and 13 of this License cannot be given full legal effect under
applicable local law, such provisions shall be enforced to the maximum extent
permitted by that law.
In such cases, courts shall apply the local law in a manner that most
closely approximates an absolute exclusion or limitation of civil liability in
connection with the Work, consistent with the intent of Sections 12 and 13,
unless a warranty or assumption of liability accompanies a copy of the Work in
return for a fee.
15. Additional Permissions.
Additional permissions are terms that supplement the terms of this License
by making exceptions from one or more of its conditions.
When you Convey a copy of a covered Work, you may at your option remove any
additional permissions from that copy, or from any part of it.
Additional permissions that are applicable to the entire Work shall be
treated as though they were included in this License, to the extent that they
are valid under applicable law. If additional permissions apply only to part
of the Work, that part may be used separately under those permissions, but the
entire Work remains governed by this License without regard to the additional
permissions.
You may place additional permissions on material added by you to a covered
Work, provided that such additional permissions do not impose further
restrictions on the exercise of the rights granted under this License.
16. Conveying Verbatim Copies.
You may convey exact, unmodified copies of the Work, as received, in any
medium, provided that you:
(a) conspicuously and appropriately publish an appropriate copyright notice;
(b) keep intact all notices stating that this License applies to the Work
and that no warranty is provided; and
(c) provide all recipients with a copy of this License.
Nothing in this License prohibits charging a fee for the physical act of
transferring a copy, or for providing support, maintenance, or warranty
services, provided that such fees do not impose additional restrictions on the
rights granted under this License.
PROJECT TICK GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE
END OF TERMS AND CONDITIONS
If you develop a new program and wish to grant the public the freedoms to
use, study, modify, and convey it under the terms of this License, you may
apply this License to the program by attaching the notices described below.
It is recommended to place these notices at the beginning of each source
file, in order to clearly indicate the applicable license terms and the
exclusion of warranty. Each file should include at least a copyright notice and
a reference to where the full text of this License can be found.
<one line to give the program's name and a brief idea of what it does.>
Copyright (C) <year> <name of author>
This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it
under the terms of the Project Tick General Public License, version 3.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT
ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or
FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the Project Tick General Public
License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the Project Tick General Public License
along with this program. If not, see <https://projecttick.org/>.
You are encouraged to include information on how to contact the author or
maintainer of the program by electronic means.
If the program provides an interactive user interface, whether through a
terminal, graphical interface, or network-based system, it should display
Appropriate Legal Notices in a reasonable and prominent manner. Such notices
should include a copyright notice, a statement that the program is provided
without warranty, and information on how to view a copy of this License.
If you develop the program as part of your employment, education, or under
contract, you should ensure that no conflicting claims exist with respect to
the copyright of the program, or that any required permissions or disclaimers
have been obtained.
This License is a copyleft license. If you intend to permit use, linking, or
incorporation on terms materially broader than those provided here, you should
carefully evaluate whether a different license better suits your goals.