license dates

[sanbrock]

Should not we use consistent license dates for all nxdl.xml files? Specifically 2008-2024 throughout

[prjemian]

There are reasons why a copyright starting date may differ. Is this a problem?

I don't believe we should go and change this type of history.

[mkuehbach]

Poten
https://reuse.software/

[phyy-nx]

Discussion from NIAC: it's likely the different copyright statements arose either from the time in which the given file was created, or a copypaste from one file to another. The question is a) is it appropriate to have the copyright in each individual file at all, and b) if so, should they all be the same?

@tacaswell a) if all the files are part of the same work doesn't matter, but if they are separate works they do matter b) yes

Proposal, make all the copyright statements the same, and set the ranges to 2008-

(more research to be done)

[paulmillar]

The usual IANAL disclaimer applies, but I believe copyright year indicates when changes were made (and published).

The procedure (as I understand it) is that, each time a file is edited, the copyright date-range should be updated to include the current year. If the date already shows the current year then no change is needed.

For example, if a file states it is "copyright 2000--2023" then the first edit of 2024 should updated the copyright year to "2000--2024". Subsequent changes in 2024 would leave the date unchanged.

From this answer, the answer's author claims that intermittent (non-continuous) edits should be written as comma-separated list of date-ranges (where a date-range could be a single year). For example, a file created in 2020 and updated in 2024 should be written "copyright 2020,2024" and not "copyright 2020--2024".

To be honest, I've never seen copyright asserted using anything other than a single date-range ("2020--2024" in above example).

As an aside, it might be possible verify (and possibly update) the copyright date-range in files using information stored in git.

Back to Sander's suggestion: no, I don't believe we should have a consistent copyright date-range on all files because this would be inconsistent with (what I've seen as) common practice with other projects.

[prjemian]

Every year, I have updated the final copyright year throughout the project. Most recently in #1355. See utils/update_copyright_date.py for details. This script does not touch the starting date.

[prjemian]

Regarding the lack of gaps in the range, this script assures that NeXus asserts continuous copyright from starting date inclusive to the present.

[yayahjb]

Dear Aaron, A copyright statement is a statement of fact about what entity legally holds the various rights to copy the work, prepare derivative works, distribute copies, etc. According to copyright.gov, "Copyright is a type of intellectual property that protects original works of authorship as soon as an author fixes the work in a tangible form of expression. In copyright law, there are a lot of different types of works, including paintings, photographs, illustrations, musical compositions, sound recordings, computer programs, books, poems, blog posts, movies, architectural works, plays, and so much more!" This sounds simple, but is actually very complex, especially when foreign governments get into the act, since different countries have different laws, treaties, etc. For us the interesting thing is that the success of the open source software movement is based on careful application of copyright law. If you don't want to get tangled up in messy legal disputes, consult with a lawyer and follow their advice. That being said, be absolutely certain you tell the truth to the lawyer about who created whatever works you are discussing and when they created it. Making a mess of copyright statements by generating them thoughtlessly because it is convenient to do so is downright foolish. Feel free to show this message to LBL counsel. Regards, Herbert

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On Sat, Sep 28, 2024 at 9:24 AM Aaron S. Brewster ***@***.***> wrote: Discussion from NIAC: it's likely the different copyright statements arose either from the time in which the given file was created, or a copypaste from one file to another. The question is a) is it appropriate to have the copyright in each individual file at all, and b) if so, should they all be the same? @tacaswell <https://github.com/tacaswell> a) if all the files are part of the same work doesn't matter, but if they are separate works they do matter b) yes Proposal, make all the copyright statements the same, and set the ranges to 2008- (more research to be done) — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#1437 (comment)>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/ABB6EALA6QDUPE4KNDKKGA3ZY2U2NAVCNFSM6AAAAABO43ZJW2VHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMZDGOBQGYZTSMBYGU> . You are receiving this because you are subscribed to this thread.Message ID: ***@***.***>

[prjemian]

Always good to have a contemporary review. I've been following the practice recommended to me years ago by legal counsel here. On Sat, Sep 28, 2024, 8:32 PM Herbert J. Bernstein ***@***.***> wrote:

…

Dear Aaron, A copyright statement is a statement of fact about what entity legally holds the various rights to copy the work, prepare derivative works, distribute copies, etc. According to copyright.gov, "Copyright is a type of intellectual property that protects original works of authorship as soon as an author fixes the work in a tangible form of expression. In copyright law, there are a lot of different types of works, including paintings, photographs, illustrations, musical compositions, sound recordings, computer programs, books, poems, blog posts, movies, architectural works, plays, and so much more!" This sounds simple, but is actually very complex, especially when foreign governments get into the act, since different countries have different laws, treaties, etc. For us the interesting thing is that the success of the open source software movement is based on careful application of copyright law. If you don't want to get tangled up in messy legal disputes, consult with a lawyer and follow their advice. That being said, be absolutely certain you tell the truth to the lawyer about who created whatever works you are discussing and when they created it. Making a mess of copyright statements by generating them thoughtlessly because it is convenient to do so is downright foolish. Feel free to show this message to LBL counsel. Regards, Herbert On Sat, Sep 28, 2024 at 9:24 AM Aaron S. Brewster ***@***.***> wrote: > Discussion from NIAC: it's likely the different copyright statements arose > either from the time in which the given file was created, or a copypaste > from one file to another. The question is a) is it appropriate to have the > copyright in each individual file at all, and b) if so, should they all be > the same? > > @tacaswell <https://github.com/tacaswell> a) if all the files are part of > the same work doesn't matter, but if they are separate works they do matter > b) yes > > Proposal, make all the copyright statements the same, and set the ranges > to 2008- > > (more research to be done) > > — > Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub > < #1437 (comment)>, > or unsubscribe > < https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/ABB6EALA6QDUPE4KNDKKGA3ZY2U2NAVCNFSM6AAAAABO43ZJW2VHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMZDGOBQGYZTSMBYGU> > . > You are receiving this because you are subscribed to this thread.Message > ID: ***@***.***> > — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#1437 (comment)>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AARMUMEZYMLX6OQTLARENR3ZY5KCRAVCNFSM6AAAAABO43ZJW2VHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMZDGOBRGA2TCOBVGA> . You are receiving this because you were assigned.Message ID: ***@***.***>

[phyy-nx]

Got some (non-official) copyright advice from some folks at my work. We are doing fine. To reiterate:

• Our definitions have a copyright line like this one: "Copyright (C) 2014-2024 NeXus International Advisory Committee (NIAC)"
• The first year is the date the file was created
• The second year is the date of the most recent release
• No need to go change all the definitions to the same Copyright line
• Each release, we should update the second year
• The second year is actually the start of the copyright period after the last significant change (which is our releases)