Re: [gentoo-project] rfc: copyright attribution clarifications

[Sarah White]

On 11/14/18 10:53 AM, Andrew Savchenko wrote:
> On Wed, 14 Nov 2018 07:24:28 -0800 Rich Freeman wrote:
>> On Wed, Nov 14, 2018 at 6:45 AM Andrew Savchenko <bircoph@g.o> wrote:
>>>
>>> On Wed, 14 Nov 2018 07:50:48 -0800 Rich Freeman wrote:
>>>> On Tue, Nov 13, 2018 at 6:46 PM William Hubbs <williamh@g.o> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> On Tue, Nov 13, 2018 at 06:17:17PM -0800, Rich Freeman wrote:
>>>>>> On Tue, Nov 13, 2018 at 10:32 AM William Hubbs <williamh@g.o> wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Give me an example of a Linux kernel source file that contains a
>>>> multiline table of years and copyright holders.  At best you'll find
>>>> random notices scattered around files in my experience, mostly because
>>>> of how the code was pulled in from outside.
>>>
>>> Sure, from line 4 to line 10:
>>> https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/tree/drivers/char/random.c
>>>
>>> Multiline table with copyright holders and separate years for each
>>> one.
>>
>> Sure, now look at the very next file in the same directory:
>> https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/tree/drivers/char/raw.c
>>
>> No copyright notice at all.
>
> And there is nothing wrong with this. The point of my link was to
> prove that multiline copyright notices are used in well known
> projects.
>
>>>>> Look anywhere outside the Gentoo tree. For that matter, take the Linux
>>>>> kernel, or even in the systemd source, there are several places with
>>>>> multiple copyright notices in them.
>>>>
>>>> Find me any project that organizes these into tables with years and
>>>> copyright holders at the top of the file consistently as a matter of
>>>> policy.  As far as I can tell the Linux project has no consistent
>>>> policy on this front, and systemd inherited numerous outside source
>>>> trees as its scope expanded.
>>>
>>> We are not talking about demanding multiline headers for each
>>> ebuild, we are talking about a policy allowing such headers if
>>> necessary. This is the essentially same as Linux kernel does.
>>
>> The Linux kernel has no policy at all regarding copyright notices.
>> So, they allow anything and everything as far as I can tell.  Or, if
>> they apply any filters it is just at the individual committer level as
>> code trickles its way up.
>
> It doesn't matter if they have a written policy or not. It is
> matter that such headers are allowed.
>
> And please show me the FOSS project other than Gentoo or its
> derivatives which requires single line copyright header and
> explicitly forbids multiline copyright notices.
>
>
> Best regards,
> Andrew Savchenko
>

I can't name any explicitly forbid multiline copyright.

for FOSS/Libre projects, I think it's a gentoo-ism, but
that's specifically in FOSS/Libre. for proprietary and
"work for hire" where the development is done under the
direction of a formal entity [business?], it's far more
common, and I think it wouldn't take 5 minutes to find
examples of those policies (but only corporate stuff)

it comes down to, I think - does gentoo wish to own
everything and hold copyright? that's much easier to
accept if the contributors are under contract and are
employed by gentoo.

-- kuza