Is there a certain way that I have to include a library and its license?

Question

I know this may be a dumb question, but I'm only 15 so I don't really know how the legal part of it works. When I choose a .dll to be included in my project, Visual Studio only includes the .dll file with my project (of course) so I just copy the license and stick it in a folder called licenses.

But now, I'm going to be making a program for a contest so I need to make sure I have the licenses done right or I'll get disqualified. So is there any specific location I have to keep the licenses in my project, is there a way for Visual Studio to automatically copy the license the way it does with .dll files and is there anything else I have to watch out for legally?

PS: If it matters, the libraries I'm planning on using right now are WriteableBitmapEx and AvalonDock

Thanks

Answer 1

I don't know if there's a standard way to include licenses. Libraries are easy, in that if it's not included the correct way the application won't work.

Licenses are fuzzier, because each license can declare how users have to declare the component's usage.

In your specific cases, the two libraries use different licenses: Microsoft Public License and new BSD license. So, you should pay attention to the details in the license about binary and source releases and act appropriately.

How you deliver licenses or notifications can vary. I've seen it done through releases notes that can be as simple as a text file in the file system that gets delivered with your binary files. I've also seen About boxes in client applications display this type of information. Have also seen this written as part of log file output when a service starts.

From my experience the "how" of the legal commitments can vary. As long as you can show that you supply the copyright notice, etc, it can be as simple as including some text files and referencing them in the release notes.

Hope this helps.