Is there a license on the nif file format?
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DestinedToDie
- Posts: 1181
- Joined: 29 Jun 2015, 09:08
Is there a license on the nif file format?
Title. Can I use nif files commercially or will I have to rely 100% on .osg format?
Re: Is there a license on the nif file format?
it was said while ago that those can't be patented or lisenced at least but then again is the nif file format (documentation, reverse engineering) in same bunch with gamebryo which if i recall correctly psi29 was toughing the subject on one comment. something about general unpossibility for licencing the file format itself but then again there's the commercial point.
is there any other cases as construction sets have had that no commercial clause and other games supporting nif format haven't been moddable to total remake what know of but can be wrong.
edit: ... can nif files be used in example suite as it will be possibly sold in a bundle in depian \ ubuntu distribution ?
is there any other cases as construction sets have had that no commercial clause and other games supporting nif format haven't been moddable to total remake what know of but can be wrong.
edit: ... can nif files be used in example suite as it will be possibly sold in a bundle in depian \ ubuntu distribution ?
Re: Is there a license on the nif file format?
Now, I ain't a real lawyer, but I do have a little understanding of copyright law:
It seems that the main protections for file formats are under patent law; the copyright is dubious as copyright law is one of the murkiest IP fields out there. A quick glance does seem to indicate that there aren't any patents for the .nif file format as it stands, though I'm not exactly an expert at scouring for patents (I don't know who created the .nif format, or how they deal with it). In any case, the largest tool for editing .nif seems to be NIFTools, which hasn't gotten shut down and I wouldn't worry about it, because certainly whoever has created the format is aware of it.
In most places, independent reverse-engineering of file formats seems to be legal, which is what NIFTools has done (I think?). Microsoft has actually used patent law (perhaps incorrectly, according to some experts) to shut out people from using their file formats, but at the same time they have also been forced to open up specifications for some of their file formats (this is unlikely to happen for .nif, because it's not that common or influential).
Basically, I wouldn't worry about it. By the time it makes a huge difference, there should be a focus on transitioning to .osg or otherwise to file formats other than .nif, which is somewhat difficult to work with.
It seems that the main protections for file formats are under patent law; the copyright is dubious as copyright law is one of the murkiest IP fields out there. A quick glance does seem to indicate that there aren't any patents for the .nif file format as it stands, though I'm not exactly an expert at scouring for patents (I don't know who created the .nif format, or how they deal with it). In any case, the largest tool for editing .nif seems to be NIFTools, which hasn't gotten shut down and I wouldn't worry about it, because certainly whoever has created the format is aware of it.
In most places, independent reverse-engineering of file formats seems to be legal, which is what NIFTools has done (I think?). Microsoft has actually used patent law (perhaps incorrectly, according to some experts) to shut out people from using their file formats, but at the same time they have also been forced to open up specifications for some of their file formats (this is unlikely to happen for .nif, because it's not that common or influential).
Basically, I wouldn't worry about it. By the time it makes a huge difference, there should be a focus on transitioning to .osg or otherwise to file formats other than .nif, which is somewhat difficult to work with.
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maqifrnswa
- Posts: 180
- Joined: 14 Jan 2013, 03:57
Re: Is there a license on the nif file format?
that's what I've heard before too.SquireNed wrote:Now, I ain't a real lawyer, but I do have a little understanding of copyright law:...
some more info:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File_format#Patents
File formats are patent law, not copyright law.
You can't patent a file format in the US, but you can patent algorithms. If no special algorithm is used to generate .nif, then perhaps there is no patent. If there is no patent, then you can't be infringing on their patent.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File_format#Patents