linux-kernel - Re: Kernel GPLv question-"Prominent Notice"

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Message-Id: <20100728162246.33f1a937.rdunlap@xenotime.net>
Date:	Wed, 28 Jul 2010 16:22:46 -0700
From:	Randy Dunlap <rdunlap@...otime.net>
To:	David VomLehn <dvomlehn@...co.com>
Cc:	Linux Kernel Mailing List <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>
Subject: Re: Kernel GPLv question-"Prominent Notice"

On Wed, 28 Jul 2010 16:10:17 -0700 David VomLehn wrote:

> Not looking to be flamed, but I gotta ask. The GPLv2 has the sentence:
> 
> 	You must cause the modified files to carry prominent notices
> 	stating that you changed the files and the date of any change.
> 
> My understanding of kernel community protocol is that you only put change
> info in the source file if you made a major change, not if you corrected
> something minor. IIRC, I even saw a patch bounced, in part, because it had
> a line of change info added for a minor fix. (Again, IIRC, it was accepted
> when it was resubmitted as modified)
> 
> We've been sued a time or two, making our legal folk a bit sensitive and
> they want developers to follow the GPL to the letter. Now, they're not
> likely to post anything here, but I thought I might personally get some
> sense of what the future might hold. And I'm confident I can look
> forward to some clearly stated viewpoints.
> -- 
> David VL
> --

Yeah, we aren't lawyers here (or the ones who are here usually
don't post anything -- they are read-only).  That makes these comments
worth what you paid for them.


a.  Changelogs go into the (git) patch description, not in the source code.

b.  Even if/when we put change comments in the source code, it's (usually) not
done for trivial changes.


---
~Randy
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