[TOS] Need advice/opinions about Spring 2013 semester project

[Karl R. Wurst]

The last few years, I have had the students in my Software Development 
Process course work in an existing FOSS project. I was planning that 
again, but have been approached about another project and am trying to 
decide whether to do it, and how to handle it.

Worcester State University has entered into a partnership with the 
Worcester Art Museum[1], with a faculty member on our campus named to 
the position of Presidential Fellow for Arts, Education and Community. 
This person has contacted me about a request from the museum to have our 
CS students develop an app or apps to support a major re-installation of 
their extensive collection of Old Masters works. They are planning a 
salon-style installation similar to the one at the Museum of Fine Arts, 
Boston[2]. The impression that I get from our discussions so far is that 
they want an app that lets patrons view catalog information about the 
exhibit, and comment/post about their own impressions/experiences of the 
works and participate in extended asynchronous conversation about the 
exhibit. I am intrigued by this project and am seriously considering it 
as the semester project for my Software Development Process course.

I have not met with the WAM staff yet, but I have been thinking about 
the project, and written a list of questions to ask them when we do 
meet. Some of these are questions that I think I need more information 
on before we meet. I am hoping that TOS will have some answers, or at 
least opinions and/or advice.

1. I am still hoping to incorporate FOSS into this project. The first 
idea would be to find an existing FOSS project that does something 
similar to what they are looking for, and use/adapt that software and 
contribute our work back to the project. If you know of any project that 
sounds remotely simliar to the (somewhat vague) description I've given, 
I'd love to hear about it and investigate it.

2. If we have to develop it from scratch, it would be nice to release 
this as a FOSS project that other museums could use/adapt for their own 
exhibits.

3. I am concerned about being stuck maintaining the project, once the 
semester has ended and the students have graduated. Adapting existing 
software may help with this problem, as there would (hopefully) be a 
community support it. Starting our own project for this is not going to 
solve this problem, at least in the short term.

4. How to handle the Intellectual Property?
     1. Obviously, the static content (catalog material) created by WAM 
staff will be owned by WAM.
     2. Patron-generated content (comments, posts, etc.) probably 
becomes property of WAM as well, but there will have to be an 
appropriate legal statement to that effect, that the user will have to 
agree to before using the app.
     3. The program code itself is a bigger question.
         1. I don't believe that WAM will own it - since the students 
and I are not being paid/under contract to produce this, it is not "work 
for hire."
         2. If WAM wants to own the code - there would have to be a 
contract that all the students (and I) would sign, that would transfer 
ownership as a donation to the museum.
         3. I know that any portions of the code that I produce are 
owned by me - this is specified in our faculty contract. I can, however, 
license or transfer it to someone else at my discretion.
         4. I believe that any portions of the code that the students 
produce are owned by them, but they could license or transfer it.
             - This may be complicated by the use of University 
resources in developing the code. That may give WSU some claim. I need 
to investigate this.
         5. My preferred solution would be to license the code under an 
open source license. But who would own it?
             - I guess WAM could, but I'm not sure if they would want 
the liability.
             - I guess WSU could. I can investigate that.
             - How do most projects handle this? Do they create some 
sort of legal entity to own the code, and have all contributors license 
their contribution to that entity?

Lots of questions. If you have any opinions or advice, I would 
appreciate it.

Thanks.

[1] http://worcesterart.org/
[2] 
http://www.mfa.org/collections/featured-galleries/european-painting-1550-1700-and-hanoverian-silver

-- 

  __________________________________________________
  Karl R. Wurst Ph.D., Professor and Chair
  Computer Science, Worcester State University
  486 Chandler Street, Worcester, MA, USA 01602-2597
  Email: Karl.Wurst at worcester.edu
  Web: http://sharepoint.worcester.edu/faculty/kwurst
  Phone:  +1-508-929-8728
  Fax: +1-508-929-8156