longer, eg the text "GNU Emacs is free software...".
+Summary for the impatient:
+
+1. Don't add a file to Emacs written by someone other than yourself
+without thinking about the legal aspect (make sure they have an
+assignment, adjust the copyright statements in the file). NB the
+ChangeLog entry should be in the name of the author of the code, not
+the person who installs it.
+
+2. With images, add the legal info to a README file in the directory
+containing the image.
+
+3. If you add a lot of text to a previously trivial file that had no
+legal notices, consider if you should add a copyright statement.
+
+4. Please don't just add an FSF copyright without checking that is the
+right thing to do.
+
+
Every non-trivial file distributed through the Emacs CVS should be
self-explanatory in terms of copyright and license. This includes
files that are not distributed in Emacs releases (for example, the
CVS, then it does not really matter about adding a copyright statement
to the generated file.
-However, here is a quote from Matt Norwood (Software Freedom Law
-Center) that suggests we should revise the above policy about trivial
-files:
-
- If FSF has a strong policy reason notices off of files it
- considers "trivial", this will take a lot more bookkeeping; it
- also runs the risk of these "trivial" files later growing into
- non-trivial files, and being in the tree without any record of
- authorship. All in all, I think it's a better policy to attach the
- notice and let future authors decide if something is trivial when
- they want to reuse it elsewhere.
- [...]
- In general, copyright law will step back and look at the overall "work"
- consisting of all the assembled components working together as a system;
- it will apply protection and permissions to this system, not to its
- subcomponents. If parts of it are recombined into another system, it
- will consider the protections and permissions for each of the source
- components only in order to assess the overall status of the work again.
- The assessment of whether a set of components is entitled to copyright
- protection is the degree to which they display "creativity": not as
- atomic units, but as parts of a system working in concert. Thus, several
- "trivial" components working together in some coherent system might be
- protectible.
-
-RMS feels, though, that in trivial files (eg etc/FTP), having a
-license notice looks odd. Matt Norwood has confirmed it is not
-_necessary_ to have licenses in such files, so we are sticking with
-the policy of no licenses in "trivial" files.
+Legal advice says that we could, if we wished, put a license notice
+even in trivial files, because copyright law in general looks at the
+overall work as a whole. It is not _necessary_ to do so, and rms
+prefers that we do not. This means one needs to take care that trivial
+files do not grow and become non-trivial without having a license
+added. NB consequently, if you add a lot of text to a small file,
+consider whether your changes have made the file worthy of a copyright
+notice, and if so, please add one.
+
+It can be helpful to put a reminder comment at the start of a trivial
+file, eg: "add a license notice if this grows to > 10 lines of code".
The years in the copyright notice should be updated every year (see
file "years" in this directory). The PS versions of refcards etc
All README (and other such text files) that are non-trivial should
contain copyright statements and GPL license notices, exactly as .el
-files do (see e.g. README in the top-level directory). (Before 2007,
+files do (see e.g. README in the top-level directory). Before 2007,
we used a simple, short statement permitting copying and modification
provided legal notices were retained. In Feb 2007 we switched to the
-standard GPL text, on legal advice.)
+standard GPL text, on legal advice. Some older text files in etc/
+should, however, keep their current licenses (see below for list).
For image files, the copyright and license details should be recorded
in a README file in each directory with images. (Legal advice says
lispintro/install-sh
- this file is copyright MIT, which is OK. Leave the copyright alone.
-admin/check-doc-strings
+src/m/news-r6.h
public domain, leave alone.
etc/edt-user.doc
- update BOTH notices in this file
+etc/emacs.csh
+ - keep simple license for this simple file
+
+etc/future-bug
+ - doesn't need a humourless disclaimer, because Karl Fogel says we
+ can consider it part of Emacs, and he has a blanker disclaimer for
+ Emacs changes. (email to rgm "[Emacs-commit] emacs/etc future-bug",
+ 2007028)
+
etc/letter.pbm,letter.xpm
- trivial, no notice needed.
<http://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/emacs-devel/2007-02/msg00324.html>
+etc/FTP, ORDERS
+ - trivial (at time of writing), no license needed
+
etc/GNU, INTERVIEW, LINUX-GNU, MOTIVATION, SERVICE, THE-GNU-PROJECT,
WHY-FREE
rms: "These are statements of opinion or testimony. Their licenses
leim/MISC-DIC/CTLau-b5.html, CTLau.html, cangjie-table.b5, cangjie-table.cns,
pinyin.map, ziranma.cin
- leave the copyright alone.
+Note that pinyin.map, ziranma.cin (and hence the generated
+leim/quail/PY.el, ZIRANMA.el) are under GPLv1 or later.
leim/SKK-DIC/SKK-JISYO.L
ja-dic/ja-dic.el
(the latter is auto-generated from the former). Leave the copyright alone.
lib-src/etags.c
- - this has a copyright Ken Arnold. We are still deciding what should
- be done here (see below).
+ Copyright information is duplicated in etc/ETAGS.README. Update that
+ file too.
+
+ Until 2007 etags.c was described as being copyright FSF and Ken Arnold.
+ After some investigation in Feb 2007, then to the best of our
+ knowledge we believe that the original 1984 Emacs version was based
+ on the version in BSD4.2. See for example this 1985 post from Ken Arnold:
+ <http://groups.google.com/group/mod.sources/browse_thread/thread/ffe5c55845a640a9>
+ I have received enough requests for the current source to ctags
+ to post it. Here is the latest version (what will go out with
+ 4.3, modulo any bugs fixed during the beta period). It is the
+ 4.2 ctags with recognition of yacc and lex tags added.
+
+ See also a 1984 version of ctags (no copyright) posted to net.sources:
+ <http://groups.google.com/group/net.sources/msg/a21b6c21be12a98d>
+ Version of etags.c in emacs-16.56 duplicates comment typos.
+
+ Accordingly, in Feb 2007 we added a 1984 copyright for the
+ University of California and a revised BSD license. The terms of
+ this require that the full license details be available in binary
+ distributions - hence the file etc/ETAGS.README.
lib-src/getopt1.c, getopt_int.h
- these are from the GNU C library. Leave the copyrights alone.
lisp/net/tramp.el
- there are also copyrights in the body of the file. Update these too.
+
+lwlib/
+rms (2007/02/17): "lwlib is not assigned to the FSF; we don't consider
+it part of Emacs. [...] Therefore non-FSF copyrights are ok in lwlib."
+
+Leave these files under GPLv1 or later.
+[Note that lwlib.c and xlwmenu.c were installed in 1994 under GPLv2 or
+later, but I reverted them to GPLv1 or later which I think is right
+for the original lwlib/.] FIXME was this right?
+
+FSF copyrights should only appear in files which have undergone
+non-trivial cumulative changes from the original versions in the Lucid
+Widget Library. NB this means that if you make non-trivial changes to
+a file with no FSF copyright, you should add one. Also, if changes are
+reverted to the extent that a file becomes basically the same as the
+original version, the FSF copyright should be removed.
+
+In my (rgm) opinion, as of Feb 2007, all the non-trivial files differ
+significantly from the original versions, with the exception of
+lwlib-Xm.h. Most of the changes that were made to this file have
+subsequently been reverted. Therefore I removed the FSF copyright from
+this file (which is arguably too trivial to merit a notice anyway). I
+added FSF copyright to the following files which did not have them
+already: Makefile.in, lwlib-Xaw.c, lwlib-int.h (borderline),
+lwlib-utils.c (borderline), lwlib.c, lwlib.h.
+
+Copyright years before the advent of public CVS in 2001 were those
+when I judged (from the CVS logs) that non-trivial amounts of change
+had taken place. I also adjusted the existing FSF years in xlwmenu.c,
+xlwmenu.h, and xlwmenuP.h on the same basis.
+
+Note that until Feb 2007, the following files in lwlib were lacking
+notices: lwlib-int.h, lwlib.h, lwlib-Xaw.h, lwlib-Xlw.h, lwlib-utils.h
+
+The following files did not list a Lucid copyright: xlwmenu.h,
+xlwmenuP.h.
+
+To the best of our knowledge, all the code files in lwlib were
+originally part of the Lucid Widget Library, even if they did not say
+so explicitly. For example, they were all present in Lucid Emacs 19.1
+in 1992. The exceptions are the two Xaw files, which did not appear
+till Lucid Emacs 19.9 in 1994. The file lwlib-Xaw.h is too trivial to
+merit a copyright notice, but would presumably have the same one as
+lwlib-Xaw.c. We have been unable to find a true standalone version of
+LWL, if there was such a thing, to check definitively.
+
+To clarify the situation, in Feb 2007 we added Lucid copyrights and
+GPL notices to those files lacking either that were non-trivial,
+namely: lwlib-int.h, lwlib.h, xlwmenu.h, xlwmenuP.h. This represents
+our best understanding of the legal status of these files. We also
+clarified the notices in Makefile.in, which was originally the
+Makefile auto-generated from Lucid's Imakefile.
+
+As of Feb 2007, the following files are considered too trivial for
+notices: lwlib-Xaw.h, lwlib-Xlw.h, lwlib-utils.h.
+
+
msdos/is_exec.c, sigaction.c
- these files are copyright DJ Delorie. Leave the copyrights alone.
Leave the Eli Zaretskii copyright in is_exec.c alone. See the
msdos/README file for the legal history of these files.
+
+oldXMenu/
+ Keep the "copyright.h" method used by X11, rather than moving the
+ licenses into the files. Note that the original X10.h did not use
+ copyright.h, but had an explicit notice, which we retain.
+
+If you make non-trivial changes to a file which does not have an FSF
+notice, add one and a GPL notice (as per Activate.c). If changes to a
+file are reverted such that it becomes essentially the same as the
+original X11 version, remove the FSF notice and GPL.
+
+Only the files which differ significantly from the original X11
+versions should have FSF copyright and GPL notices. At time of writing
+(Feb 2007), this is: Activate.c, Create.c, Internal.c. I (rgm)
+established this by diff'ing the current files against those in X11R1,
+and when I found significant differences looking in the ChangeLog for
+the years they originated (the CVS logs are truncated before 1999). I
+therefore removed the FSF notices (added in 200x) from the other
+files. There are some borderline cases IMO: AddSel.c, InsSel.c,
+XMakeAssoc.c, XMenu.h. For these I erred on the side of NOT adding FSF
+notices.
+
+With regards to whether the files we have changed should have GPL
+added or not, rms says (2007-02-25, "oldXmenu issues"):
+
+ It does not make much difference, because oldXmenu is obsolete
+ except for use in Emacs (and it is not normally used in Emacs any
+ more either).
+
+ So, to make things simple, please put our changes under the GPL.
+
+insque.c had no copyright notice until 2005. The version of insque.c
+added to Emacs 1992-01-27 is essentially the same as insremque.c added
+to glic three days later by Roland McGrath, with an FSF copyright and
+GPL, but no ChangeLog entry:
+<http://sources.redhat.com/cgi-bin/cvsweb.cgi/~checkout~/libc/misc/insremque.c?\
+rev=1.1&cvsroot=glibc>
+To the best of his recollection, McGrath (who has a copyright
+assignment) was the author of this file (email from roland at frob.com
+to rms, 2007-02-23, "Where did insque.c come from?"). The FSF
+copyright and GPL in this file are therefore correct as far as we
+understand it.
+
+Imakefile had no legal info in Feb 2007, but was obviously based on
+the X11 version (which also had no explicit legal info). As it was
+unused, I removed it. It would have the same MIT copyright as
+Makefile.in does now.
+
+
src/gmalloc.c
- contains numerous copyrights from the GNU C library. Leave them alone.
if you can clarify its legal status.
-*** These are copyright issues that need not be fixed until after
- Emacs 22 is released (though if they can be fixed before, that is
- obviously good):
+** Some notes on resolved issues, for historical information only
+lisp/term/README
+ - had no copyright notice till Feb 2007. ChangeLog.3 suggests it was
+ written by Eric Raymond. When asked by rms on 14 Feb 2007 he said:
-Is it OK to just `cvs remove' a file for legal reasons, or is
-something more drastic needed? A removed file is still available from
-CVS, if suitable options are applied. (This CVS issue obviously does
-not affect a release).
- rms: will ask lawyer
+ I don't remember writing it, but it reads like my prose and I believe
+ I wrote the feature(s) it's describing. So I would have been the
+ likeliest person to write it.
+ Odds are that I did, but I'm not certain.
-Make sure that all files with non-standard copyrights or licenses are
-noted in this file.
+ Accordingly, FSF copyright was added.
-REMOVED etc/orgcard.tex, orgcard.ps
- Re-add these files if an assignment is received from Rooke.
+** Issues that are "fixed" for the release of Emacs 22, but we may
+ wish to revisit later in more detail
-etc/images
- Image files from GTK, Gnome are under GPLv2 (no "or later"?). RMS will
- contact image authors in regards to future switch to v3.
+
+admin/check-doc-strings
+ File says it's in the public domain, but that might not make it so.
+etc/e/eterm-color.ti
src/acldef.h, chpdef.h, ndir.h
On legal advice from Matt Norwood, the following comment was added
to these files in Feb 2007:
(details in email from Matt Norwood to rms, 2007/02/03).
-REMOVED src/unexhp9k800.c
- - we would like to re-add this file if possible. Please let us know
- if you can clarify its legal status.
- http://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/emacs-devel/2007-02/msg00138.html
+src/m/mips4.h, news-risc.h, pmax.h
+src/s/aix3-2.h, bsd386.h, hpux8.h, hpux9.h, irix4-0.h, irix5-0.h,
+isc2-2.h, netbsd.h, osf1.h, sol2-3.h, sunos4-0.h, usg5-4-2.h
+ - all these (not obviously trivial) files were missing copyrights
+ till Feb 2007, when FSF copyright was added. Matt Norwood advised:
+ For now, I think the best policy is to assume that we do have
+ assignments from the authors (I recall many of these header files
+ as having been originally written by rms), and to attach an FSF
+ copyright with GPL notice. We can amend this if and when we
+ complete the code audit. Any additions to these files by
+ non-assigned authors are arguably "de minimis" contributions to
+ Emacs: small changes or suggestions to a work that are subsumed in
+ the main authors' copyright in the entire work.
+Here is my (rgm) take on the details of the above files:
-*** These are copyright issues still to be addressed:
+mips4.h
+ might be trivial? started trivial, been added to in tiny changes by
+ those with FSF assignment, often result of email suggestions by others.
+
+news-risc.h
+ started trivial. Grown by tiny additions, plus chunk
+ from mips.h, which was and is Copyright FSF
+
+pmax.h
+ started trivial. grown in tiny changes, except for maybe Jim Wilson's
+ comment.
+
+? irix4-0.h
+ I would say started non-trivial (1992, rms). only tiny changes since
+ installed.
+? irix5-0.h
+ I would say started non-trivial (1993, jimb, heavily based
+ on irix4-0.h). A few borderline non-tiny changes since.
+
+? isc2-2.h
+ started trivial. 2 non-tiny change, in 1993. looks to
+ be made up of several small tweaks from various sources. maybe
+ non-tiny total changes from Karl Berry (no emacs assignment).
+
+osf1.h
+ started trivial. grown in tiny changes (one borderline tiny change
+ by fx in 2000, but most code was later removed). non-tiny addition
+ in 2002 from m/alpha.h, but that was and is copyright FSF.
+
+usg5-4-2.h
+ started non-trivial, but was heavily based on usg5-4.h, which was and is
+ copyright FSF. only tiny changes since installed.
+
+sol2-3.h
+ started trivial. only non-tiny change (1994) incorporated code from
+ usg5-4.h, which was and is copyright FSF.
+
+aix3-2.h, bsd386.h, hpux8.h, hpux9.h, netbsd.h, sunos4-0.h
+ started trivial, grown in tiny changes.
+
+netbsd.h:
+Roland McGrath said to rms (2007/02/17): "I don't really remember
+anything about it. If I put it in without other comment, then probably
+I wrote it myself."
+
+
+Someone might want to tweak the copyright years (for dates before
+2001) that I used in all these files.
+
+Note: erring on the side of caution, I also added notices to some
+files I thought might be considered non-trivial (if one includes
+comment) in s/:
+ aix4-1.h hiuxmpp.h hiuxwe2.h hpux10.h irix6-0.h irix6-5.h isc3-0.h
+ ptx4.h sol2.h sunos4-0.h
+
+(everything with > 30 non-blank lines, which at least is _some_ kind of
+system)
+
+
+*** These are copyright issues that need not be fixed until after
+ Emacs 22 is released (though if they can be fixed before, that is
+ obviously good):
Maybe some relevant comments here?
<http://groups.google.com/group/linux.debian.legal/browse_thread/thread/123547ea95437a1f>
-All README (and other such files) that are non-trivial and were added
-by Emacs developers need copyright statements and copying permissions.
- missed any?
- etc/BABYL?
- lisp/term/README?
- borderline "trivial" cases (see below)...?
-These should use the standard GPL text (same as .el files), rather
-than the short notices we have been using till now.
-rms: "If a README file is under 60 lines long, using the long version
-might be ugly. Please tell me if you encounter one that is under 60
-lines."
+Is it OK to just `cvs remove' a file for legal reasons, or is
+something more drastic needed? A removed file is still available from
+CVS, if suitable options are applied. (This CVS issue obviously does
+not affect a release).
+ rms: will ask lawyer
-Clarify the legal status of image files. It's not necessary to put a
-notice in each image (where the format allows it). It's OK to put the
-information in a README file in the associated directory. Files can be
-listed in groups. See etc/README for an example.
-Image files to consider:
- etc/images/gnus/bar, dead, gnus, kill-group, reverse-smile, rot13
- etc/images/smilies/
-rms: "Can you find this by searching for items in copyright.list that
-assign images for Emacs?" [this suggests we ask Bill Wohler]
+Make sure that all files with non-standard copyrights or licenses are
+noted in this file.
-etc/gnus-logo.eps, gnus-booklet.ps, gnus-refcard.ps
- just to be safe, papers are on the way for the "Gnus logo", even
- though it is very similar to the already-assigned "Emacs logo".
+etc/BABYL
+ File says it was written in 1983 by Eugene Ciccarelli, who has no
+ assignment. RMS: "The lawyer said we can keep BABYL."
-etc/emacs.csh (+ maybe etc/DISTRIB?)
- does rms want the older, simple license for this put back? If so,
- what about emacs.bash?
+REMOVED etc/gnu.xpm, nt/icons/emacs21.ico, nt/icons/sink.ico
+ - Restore if find legal info. emacs21.ico is not due to Davenport.
+ Voelker could not immediately recall anything, but will check and
+ let us know if he finds anything.
-etc/ms-kermit - no copyright, but ms-7bkermit has one
-etc/e/eterm-color.ti - no copyright
- rms: "I think that is not copyrightable under the merger doctrine
- because the entries are all forced. At least that is the case in the
- US; I am not sure whether we can rely on that in general."
+etc/images
+ Image files from GTK, Gnome are under GPLv2 (no "or later"?). RMS will
+ contact image authors in regards to future switch to v3.
-For the above files, mail sent from rms to Matthew Norwood
-asking what to do (via Eben Moglen), 2007/1/22 ("Copyright years").
+REMOVED src/unexhp9k800.c
+ - we would like to re-add this file if possible. Please let us know
+ if you can clarify its legal status.
+ http://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/emacs-devel/2007-02/msg00138.html
-etc/TUTORIAL*
- switch to GPL, or keep older license?
+
+*** These are copyright issues still to be addressed:
+
+NB apart from switching the TUTORIALs to GPL, I think there is nothing
+here that anyone can work on without further input from rms.
-lib-src/etags.c - no 'k.* arnold' in copyright.list'
- rms: "That is ok, in principle. I used free code released by Ken
- Arnold as the starting point. However, it may be that we need to get
- and insert whatever his license was for his code."
+etc/gnus-logo.eps, gnus-booklet.ps, gnus-refcard.ps
+ just to be safe, papers are on the way for the "Gnus logo", even
+ though it is very similar to the already-assigned "Emacs logo".
- - 1984 version of ctags, with no copyright, posted to net.sources:
- http://groups.google.com/group/net.sources/msg/a21b6c21be12a98d
+etc/ms-kermit - no copyright, but ms-7bkermit has one
-lwlib/lwlib-int.h, lwlib.h - no copyright
-lwlib/Makefile.in, lwlib-utils.c, lwlib.c - copyright Lucid
-lwlib/lwlib-Xaw.c - copyright Chuck Thompson
-lwlib/lwlib.c - copyright Lucid, but FSF copyright was added in 2002 -
- was that correct?
- rms: "I asked Matthew Norwood about these, I believe."
+etc/TUTORIAL* (translations)
+ switch to GPL (see english TUTORIAL)
+ rms: "We can leave the TUTORIAL translations alone until their
+ maintainers update them."
+ Can adapt short license text from end of GPL translations at:
+ http://www.gnu.org/licenses/translations.html
+ Only a few sentences around the license notice need changing from
+ previous version.
+Done: TUTORIAL.eo
-oldXMenu/
- - should there be any FSF copyrights at all in here? Some were added
- in 2005, without licence notices. Was this right?
-oldXMenu/Makefile.in, Makefile, Imakefile, descrip.mms, insque.c
- - issues described in mail to rms, 2006/12/17.
-rms: "I have asked for lawyer's advice about these."
+lwlib/*
+ should it be under GPLv1 or later, or v2 or later?
-src/gnu.h
-src/m/mips4.h, news-r6.h, news-risc.h, pmax.h
-src/s/aix3-2.h, bsd386.h, hpux8.h, hpux9.h, irix4-0.h, irix5-0.h,
-isc2-2.h, netbsd.h, osf1.h, sol2-3.h, sunos4-0.h, usg5-4-2.h
- - all these (not obviously trivial) files are missing copyrights.
- rms: "I should talk about these with Matthew Norwood."
-The current legal advice seems to be that we should attach FSF
-copyright and GPL for the time being, then review post-release. But it
-is still under discussion.
\f
This file is part of GNU Emacs.
HCoop / bpt / emacs.git / blobdiff