> A business that would die without software will write it's own software. A business that would die without getting that software for free is not a viable business.
A business will not write its own OS, and commercial OSes have the same disclaimers. You didn't say "if you have a hard time discerning, don't use FOSS code that disclaims liability". You said "if you have a hard time discerning, don't use code that disclaims liability". (slightly paraphrased)
> I can see putting some message of intent as a developer, but people change their minds.
And then you can update the message. All the more reason not to tie it to license files.
> most slapdash proof of concept projects say so in a README
Sometimes. Less often can you tell the difference between a mildly serious project and a very serious project at a glance.
> A message of intent like you say does nothing for a business already dependent on their work.
> If you can't discern whether you can depend on something, then you need to be prepared to take over the project or live without it.
Anything could change, but knowing the intent gives you a much better starting position. And it's better to put it somewhere it can be seen in under a minute rather than after a chunk of time in investigation, especially because there might be a whole pile of dependencies to examine.
A business will not write its own OS, and commercial OSes have the same disclaimers. You didn't say "if you have a hard time discerning, don't use FOSS code that disclaims liability". You said "if you have a hard time discerning, don't use code that disclaims liability". (slightly paraphrased)
> I can see putting some message of intent as a developer, but people change their minds.
And then you can update the message. All the more reason not to tie it to license files.
> most slapdash proof of concept projects say so in a README
Sometimes. Less often can you tell the difference between a mildly serious project and a very serious project at a glance.
> A message of intent like you say does nothing for a business already dependent on their work.
> If you can't discern whether you can depend on something, then you need to be prepared to take over the project or live without it.
Anything could change, but knowing the intent gives you a much better starting position. And it's better to put it somewhere it can be seen in under a minute rather than after a chunk of time in investigation, especially because there might be a whole pile of dependencies to examine.