Modifying Proprietary Code to Make it My Own?
Hey, I came across a product I really like. They claim it is open source but then they say you can't modify and then sell their product. However, rather than build a completely new product, it would be nice if I could start with this companies product, and then reverse engineer it, modifying as much code as is necessary to create a legal custom product of my own. Since the product is developed in php, and php is basically an open source code, what are the legalities with this? If they have 10,000 lines of code, and I modify say 3000 of those lines, does that give me the right to claim ownership of the product?
I know this might ruffle some feathers of some people, and for that, well, I'm sorry. But I'm trying to find out what my options are. I know any of the advice given here is not legitimate legal advice, but I'd like to get a consensus of general opinion before forking out the cash for an attorney. Thanks!
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