License File Doubts

[Varun Thacker <va...@vthacker.in>]

Hi Everyone,

While adding license files as part of  SOLR-7887 there's a doubt that
cropped up:

Let's take solr/licenses/derby-LICENSE-ASL.txt for example which has this
section towards the end

   APPENDIX: How to apply the Apache License to your work.

      To apply the Apache License to your work, attach the following
      boilerplate notice, with the fields enclosed by brackets "[]"
      replaced with your own identifying information. (Don't include
      the brackets!)  The text should be enclosed in the appropriate
      comment syntax for the file format. We also recommend that a
      file or class name and description of purpose be included on the
      same "printed page" as the copyright notice for easier
      identification within third-party archives.

   Copyright [yyyy] [name of copyright owner]




Should we be filling out the [yyyy] and [name of copyright owner] section
in our LICENSE files?

Re: License File Doubts

[Chris Hostetter <ho...@fucit.org>]

: Let's take solr/licenses/derby-LICENSE-ASL.txt for example which has this
: section towards the end
	...
: Should we be filling out the [yyyy] and [name of copyright owner] section
: in our LICENSE files?

IIUC you're missreading that section.   Note it explicitly says...

:       the brackets!)  The text should be enclosed in the appropriate
:       comment syntax for the file format. We also recommend that a

...that section of the license is talking about what steps some "name of 
copyright owner" should take to declare some arbitrary source file 
available to the world under the ASL -- WHILE "name of  
copyright owner" STILL CLAIMS COPYRIGHT OVER THAT CODE.

(The reasons $joe_github_user might want to release something under the 
ASL while still claiming copyright over it are esoteric and i won't 
pretend to understand them)

Now: A diff question you might ask is...

>> Should we be putting a "Copyright [yyyy] The Apache Software 
>> Foundation" line at the top of all our source files

...the answer to that question is also no because (again, IIUC) the ASF as 
an "enitity that owns the copyright to some code" it distributes under the 
ASL chooses *not* to claim copyright protections -- see the ASFs legal 
guidelines on "Source File Headers for Code Developed at the ASF"...

https://www.apache.org/legal/src-headers.html#headers

And note some of the legal FAQs...

https://www.apache.org/legal/src-headers.html#faq-nonasf

> Does this policy apply to projects outside the ASF that use the Apache 
> License?
> 
> No. This is strictly an ASF policy. Other projects using the Apache 
> License should still refer to the license's appendix for guidance on 
> applying a header to their source files.


...but i could be totally wrong about all of this.  If in doubt you 
can always bring it up on legal-discuss@apache




-Hoss
http://www.lucidworks.com/

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