Open Source License Transparency: How Community Feedback Shaped Our Licenses Page

One of the best parts of building in the open is hearing from people who use the app. Last week, a ProseLint Web user submitted feedback that changed how we handle open source attribution — for the better.

The feedback that started it

A user pointed out something important:

Vale uses the MIT license which is very permissible. However, a core compliance requirement is that you must include the original copyright notice and the full MIT license text in all copies or substantial portions of the software you distribute.

They also noted that not all Vale packages use the same license. For example, the Elastic rules are distributed under Apache 2.0, while most other packages use MIT.

This was a fair and constructive point. ProseLint Web compiles Vale to WebAssembly and serves the binary directly to your browser. That counts as redistribution under the MIT license, which means we need to include Vale's copyright notice and license text. The same principle applies to the 350+ npm packages that get bundled into the JavaScript you download when you visit the app.

What we built

Rather than just quietly adding a license file, we decided to make open source attribution a first-class feature of the app.

A dedicated licenses page

ProseLint Web now has a /licenses page that includes:

• Vale's full MIT license text with a link to the upstream repository
• Every Vale rule package listed with its specific license (MIT, Apache 2.0, BSD 3-Clause) and a link to view the license on GitHub
• All 350+ npm dependencies grouped by license type, with links to each package's repository

The page is generated from our actual dependency tree, so it stays accurate as dependencies change.

License badges on every package

In the Packages modal where you select Vale rule packages, each package now shows its license type with a direct link to the license file. If you're choosing between packages, you can immediately see whether a package uses MIT, Apache 2.0, or another license.

Why this matters

Open source works because of trust. When maintainers share their code under permissive licenses, the minimum expectation is proper attribution. Getting this right isn't just a legal checkbox — it's about respecting the people whose work makes projects like ProseLint Web possible.

ProseLint Web is built on the work of hundreds of open source contributors. The Vale linting engine, the Monaco editor, the Next.js framework, syntax highlighting from Shiki, AsciiDoc processing from Asciidoctor — every one of these projects deserves clear, accessible attribution.

We want your feedback too

This change happened because someone took a few minutes to share constructive feedback. If you notice something we could do better — whether it's a bug, a missing feature, or something like license compliance — we want to hear about it.

Here's how to reach us:

• Report a bug — Something broken or not working as expected
• Share feedback — General thoughts on how the app works
• Request a feature — Ideas for new capabilities

You can also access these links directly from the Settings menu inside the editor.

Every piece of feedback helps shape the app. Thank you to everyone who has contributed so far — and especially to the user whose licensing feedback made ProseLint Web a better open source citizen.