We’re Open Source!
First let’s start off with why we wanted to open source all our designs and work. When you look around at a lot of the other hammock companies you will often see “patented” or “patent pending” designs they are selling. That’s all well and good, and we totally understand the desire to protect your intellectual property, but that’s not how we want to do things here at Hummingbird Hammocks. Being big fans of open source software and hardware in other aspects of our lives, we wanted to contribute to the community and offer what we can. We try our hardest to build the best gear we possibly can for you guys. We want to share not only the finished product but the designs and ideas behind them as well!
Open source hardware (and software) allows anyone and everyone to view, modify, redistribute and use designs however they would like. In addition it allows people to suggest changes or improvements. This contributes to the quality, usability and ultimately how much people like our gear. The current working cad files we use to produce all our hammocks and tree straps are publicly available in our GitHub Repositories, where they are free for everyone to view, clone or fork. Additionally you will find a list of materials used on each item, sewing instructions (coming soon for some items) and instructions for use and troubleshooting (also coming soon!) Future items and projects that are currently being designed and tested will be presented there in the same format.
There are only a couple of requirements for using our files. We have decided to use a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International license on all our work. This was done not to impose rules on how the files can be used, but rather to protect and continue the open source idea. Everything you might want to know about the license can be found by clicking on it, but I will run down the basics briefly. You may copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format. You may remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially. However, if you do use the files for any purpose you must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. Additionally, if you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original.
We are very excited about this new chapter for Hummingbird Hammocks and what it means for the future. If you have any questions about open source hardware, our designs, or need help with anything please don’t hesitate to leave a comment or send us an email!
