Time to update the copyrights?

Time to update the copyrights?

[Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen]

Should I just add a ", 2002" to all the Gnus files, or should we do
that individually to each file as we edit them during the year?

-- 
(domestic pets only, the antidote for overdose, milk.)
   larsi@gnus.org * Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen

Re: Time to update the copyrights?

[Russ Allbery]

Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@gnus.org> writes:

> Should I just add a ", 2002" to all the Gnus files, or should we do
> that individually to each file as we edit them during the year?

The GNU coding guidelines say to only update them when you make a change.

-- 
Russ Allbery (rra@stanford.edu)             <http://www.eyrie.org/~eagle/>

Re: Time to update the copyrights?

[Matt Armstrong]

Russ Allbery <rra@stanford.edu> writes:

> Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@gnus.org> writes:
>
>> Should I just add a ", 2002" to all the Gnus files, or should we do
>> that individually to each file as we edit them during the year?
>
> The GNU coding guidelines say to only update them when you make a
> change.

Whats more, there is copyright.el already there to do it for you (at
least in FSF Emacs).

-- 
matt

Re: Time to update the copyrights?

[Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen]

Russ Allbery <rra@stanford.edu> writes:

> The GNU coding guidelines say to only update them when you make a change.

Okidoke.  Has somebody written a maintain-copyright-date package that
goes through a directory and sees which files needs to have their
copyright updated?

-- 
(domestic pets only, the antidote for overdose, milk.)
   larsi@gnus.org * Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen

Re: Time to update the copyrights?

[Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen]

"Matt Armstrong" <matt+dated+1010273174.cccad3@lickey.com> writes:

> Whats more, there is copyright.el already there to do it for you (at
> least in FSF Emacs).

Cool.

The following patch adds a command to update an entire directory,
which I think would be useful.

--- copyright.el.~1~	Mon Jan  8 16:59:40 2001
+++ copyright.el	Tue Jan  1 01:04:48 2002
@@ -145,6 +145,17 @@
   ;; If a write-file-hook returns non-nil, the file is presumed to be written.
   nil)
 
+;;;###autoload
+(defun copyright-update-directory (directory)
+  "Update the copyright statements in DIRECTORY.
+Only .el files will be updated."
+  (interactive "DUpdate copyrights in: ")
+  (let ((current-year (format-time-string "%Y")))
+  (dolist (file (directory-files directory t "\\.el$"))
+    (when (string= current-year
+		   (format-time-string "%Y" (nth 5 (file-attributes file))))
+      (find-file file)
+      (copyright-update)))))
 
 ;;;###autoload
 (define-skeleton copyright


-- 
(domestic pets only, the antidote for overdose, milk.)
   larsi@gnus.org * Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen

Re: Time to update the copyrights?

[Randal L. Schwartz]

>>>>> "Russ" == Russ Allbery <rra@stanford.edu> writes:

Russ> Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@gnus.org> writes:
>> Should I just add a ", 2002" to all the Gnus files, or should we do
>> that individually to each file as we edit them during the year?

Russ> The GNU coding guidelines say to only update them when you make a change.

That would also be the only legal way. :) Otherwise, you're getting a
copyright extension on something that isn't substantially different,
and could be used to challenge the copyright authority completely.

IANAL, however.  Although I've paid enough to lawyers over the past
eight years that I think I'm at least an honorary member of the
bar. :)

-- 
Randal L. Schwartz - Stonehenge Consulting Services, Inc. - +1 503 777 0095
<merlyn@stonehenge.com> <URL:http://www.stonehenge.com/merlyn/>
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Re: Time to update the copyrights?

[Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen]

merlyn@stonehenge.com (Randal L. Schwartz) writes:

> That would also be the only legal way. :) Otherwise, you're getting a
> copyright extension on something that isn't substantially different,
> and could be used to challenge the copyright authority completely.

But does that mean that the copyright should only be updated if the
change is substantial?  If I edit two or three lines, then the
copyright shouldn't be updated?

-- 
(domestic pets only, the antidote for overdose, milk.)
   larsi@gnus.org * Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen

Re: Time to update the copyrights?

[Russ Allbery]

Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@gnus.org> writes:
> merlyn@stonehenge.com (Randal L. Schwartz) writes:

>> That would also be the only legal way. :) Otherwise, you're getting a
>> copyright extension on something that isn't substantially different,
>> and could be used to challenge the copyright authority completely.

> But does that mean that the copyright should only be updated if the
> change is substantial?  If I edit two or three lines, then the copyright
> shouldn't be updated?

Yup, unfortunately.  That's my understanding.

It's not clear how important it is to be very precise in the copyright
notices, but the GNU coding standards are pretty specific about what years
should and should not go into the list.

-- 
Russ Allbery (rra@stanford.edu)             <http://www.eyrie.org/~eagle/>