Publishers of open source software ordinarily do more than simply provide copies of both the source code and the object code when they distribute computer programs to the public. In addition, they establish the terms of use of the software by means of a license. A license is a contract through which the publisher allows recipients to use and modify the software, subject to certain conditions specified in the license. For example, the license might require that anyone who redistributes the software also make the source code of that software publicly available. A contract that provides users with a sufficient set of privileges to access and modify the software's source code is deemed an open source license.
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