DRAFT: Reform copyright headers → single canonical header + NOTICE (for discussion)#1863
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DRAFT: Reform copyright headers → single canonical header + NOTICE (for discussion)#1863bmander wants to merge 1 commit into
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…n tooling Reform the project's copyright headers toward a single canonical Apache-2.0 header per file (the ASF / Kubernetes / Linux-Foundation convention: "Copyright The OneBusAway Authors.", no per-file names or years), with historical attribution consolidated verbatim in a top-level NOTICE file. This is deliberately a DRAFT to open project discussion, not a finished cutover. What's here: - NOTICE: consolidated holder list plus a verbatim appendix of all 57 distinct historical copyright notices, so no attribution is lost. Three AOSP-derived files are called out as third-party notices that stay in-file. - tools/copyright-reform/apply-headers.py: idempotent migrator with a CI --check mode. Migration is gated per copyright holder via an EXCLUDED_HOLDERS list; a file is only restamped once every holder it names has authorized relocation (Apache-2.0 s4 / ASF source-header policy permit a holder to move their own notice to NOTICE). Three AOSP files are path-exempt. - tools/copyright-reform/CONSENT-REQUEST.md + consents/: the holder outreach template and the durable sign-off audit trail. This commit runs the migration once with every holder still excluded, which touches only the 21 currently header-less source files (they name no holder, so no consent is implicated) -- purely additive. The ~520 OTSF-only files and all externally-held files remain on their original headers, pending the discussion and the respective authorizations. Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
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💬 Discussion for this proposal is happening in #1864 — please comment there rather than here. |
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Purpose — open for discussion, not ready to merge
This is a draft to start a project conversation about modernizing our copyright headers. It lands the tooling, a
NOTICEfile, and a small safe first slice of the migration, but deliberately does not cut over the whole tree. Please weigh in on the approach before we proceed.The problem
Over ~15 years the per-file headers have fragmented into 40+ inconsistent variants across 624 files — differing years, name spellings, and holder lists (Paul Watts, USF/Sean Barbeau, Microsoft, Brian Ferris, Cambridge Systematics, OTSF, AOSP, …). They're a maintenance burden and frequently inaccurate.
Proposed direction
Adopt the convention used by the Apache Software Foundation, Kubernetes, and recommended by the Linux Foundation: one identical Apache-2.0 header on every file, naming no individual holder and no year —
— with all historical copyright notices preserved verbatim in a top-level
NOTICEfile (carried forward by redistributors under Apache-2.0 §4(d)).Legal basis for relocating notices
Apache-2.0 §4 and the ASF source-header policy both let a copyright owner move their own notice into
NOTICE. So relocation is gated on each holder's authorization — it does not transfer or waive any copyright. Code we did not receive from its owner (the three AOSP-derived files) keeps its notice in-file, untouched, per that same policy.What's in this PR
NOTICE— consolidated holder list + a verbatim appendix of all 57 distinct historical notices (nothing lost), and the AOSP third-party carve-out.tools/copyright-reform/apply-headers.py— idempotent migrator + CI--checkmode. Migration is gated per holder via anEXCLUDED_HOLDERSlist: a file is restamped only once every holder it names has signed off. Three AOSP files are path-exempt.tools/copyright-reform/CONSENT-REQUEST.md+consents/— holder-outreach template and durable sign-off audit trail.Migration actually applied here
Run once with every holder still excluded, so it touches only the 21 currently header-less files (they name no holder — no consent implicated). Purely additive: every diff is a header prepend, zero deletions.
Rollout plan (gradual, after discussion)
Open Transit Software Foundation(self-authorizing steward)consents/, entry removed, re-runCurrent per-holder blocked counts (
apply-headers.py --dry-run): OTSF 520, USF 88, Barbeau 65, Watts 50, Microsoft 25, then small tails.Questions for the project
apply-headers.py --checkinto CI now, or once more of the tree is migrated?🤖 Generated with Claude Code