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Artikash / Textractor

Extracts text from video games and visual novels. Highly extensible.
GNU General Public License v3.0
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Potential Licensing Concerns in 'RenpyThief' Software #1250

Open checkMeAlr opened 4 months ago

checkMeAlr commented 4 months ago

Dear Maintainers,

I am writing to bring to your attention potential licensing concerns regarding the 'RenpyThief' software, which is actively promoted on Bilibili (author's Bilibili page: https://space.bilibili.com/314844/dynamic).

This software appears to be built heavily on the integration and modification of several open-source projects, which may be used in a way that is inconsistent with their respective licensing terms. Notably, several projects under the GPL v3 license, which require derivative works to be open-sourced under the same license, seem to be central to its core functionalities.

The following are some of the potentially impacted projects:

RPG Maker MV Cheat Menu Plugin: https://github.com/emerladCoder/RPG-Maker-MV-Cheat-Menu-Plugin
RPG Maker MV Speed Plugin Clipboard Hook: https://ulmf.org/threads/rpg-maker-mv-speed-plugin-clipboard-hook.8976
MisakaHookFinder: https://github.com/hanmin0822/MisakaHookFinder
Textractor: https://github.com/Artikash/Textractor
BepInEx: https://github.com/BepInEx/BepInEx
XUnity.AutoTranslator: https://github.com/bbepis/XUnity.AutoTranslator

My intention is solely to inform you of these observations and the potential licensing conflicts arising from the use of open-source projects in 'RenpyThief.' Determining the implications and any necessary actions falls within your purview.

However, I believe it was important to highlight this potential issue due to the reliance on open-source projects as the foundation for the software's core features.

Thank you for your time and understanding. Please let me know if I can provide any further details or clarification.

Best regards

cooluse commented 4 months ago

After examining the files of RenpyThief, I found that it utilizes the following open-source code libraries: Textractor, MisakaHookFinder (based on Textractor), BepInEx, and XUnity.AutoTranslator. Unfortunately, the files of these open-source code libraries are all included within the RenpyThief program without proper attribution by its developer LinHu. LinHu did not mention or credit you and the other open-source authors, and even failed to include the GPL license provided with Textractor in RenpyThief. This neglects the obligation to inform users about the use of these open-source code libraries, which seriously violates the spirit of open source. Additionally, LinHu has restricted others' freedom to comment on his BiliBili platform, distorting the fact that RenpyThief violates the GPL agreement. The touted technology of one-click window translation for Unity3D, RenPy, and RPG engines is essentially just an integration of the aforementioned open-source projects, simplifying the configuration process. Therefore, I hope that Textractor can protect its own rights.