Accounting software should be open to scrutiny
Accounting software sees everything: revenue, customers, sometimes salaries. When we say Qompta sends nothing over the internet, you do not have to take our word for it. The code is right there: anyone can read it or have someone they trust read it.
It is the same logic as in cryptography: a secure system does not need to keep the way it works a secret.
Public code or open source?
Strictly speaking, open source software is distributed under a licence approved by the Open Source Initiative. Among other things, these licences guarantee the right to sell the software or services built on it.
Qompta is distributed under the Apache 2.0 licence, supplemented by the Commons Clause condition. That condition removes precisely the right to sell the software. Qompta is therefore source available rather than open source as the OSI defines it.
What the licence allows
- Using Qompta for free, including in a company to keep its own books.
- Copying, modifying and redistributing the software.
- Adapting it to your needs or having it adapted.
What it forbids
- Selling Qompta.
- Selling a product or service whose value comes entirely or substantially from the software, such as a paid hosted version.
The name “Qompta” and its brand elements are not granted by the licence. Only its English text, published with the code, is authoritative.
Why we rule out selling it
Qompta is free and must stay free. The Commons Clause stops a third party from taking this work and reselling it in another form. For the people who use it, nothing changes.
What this says about our work
Publishing your code means accepting that people will judge it. For a software development agency, it is also the most honest showcase there is: before you entrust us with a project, you can see how we write software. Qompta’s code is on GitHub and our Software page presents the rest.