[CMake] Please help with procedure for making contributions

Steven Velez sbv1976 at gmail.com
Thu Jun 16 14:47:01 EDT 2011


Thanks for the follow-up.  We are aware that the idea is to copy and
freely distribute the code and all contributions.  I think the idea is
that IF we are required to sign an agreement, then it doesn't impose
any odd, additional requirements/request of us.  I think our legal
department also mentioned something about being clear on the
intentions of expectations of other contributors when we are USING the
software, but I believe this is secondary in the contribution case.

Thanks, and hopefully I will actually be able to submit the patch soon.

Steven

On Thu, Jun 16, 2011 at 7:36 AM, David Cole <david.cole at kitware.com> wrote:
> On Wed, Jun 15, 2011 at 8:48 PM, Steven Velez <sbv1976 at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Hi All,
>>
>> After having searched the cmake web site and wiki, I have been unable
>> to find a documented procedure for submitting patches to CMake.   Via
>> brwosing the bug tracker and watching this list, it seems generally
>> apparent that a non-committer who wants to make a contribution simply
>> opens an issue and attaches his (or her) patch.  Is that all there is
>> to it?
> Yes, that's it. This list and its traffic are the living documentation of
> CMake, if you will. While we do have the official "help" documentation web
> pages, and there is some good stuff on the Wiki, asking here is the way to
> get answers when searching teh Interwebz yields nothing.
> To contribute a patch, please search the bug database for an existing issue
> (or open a new one if necessary), and attach it there.
> To preserve your authorship in the patch, prepare a git commit with the
> correct authorship in it, and then use the git command:
>   git format-patch -1
>
>>
>> I imagine that like most developers working for an organization
>> focusing on closed source software, everything I produce is legally
>> theirs, so I have been very careful about getting permission from them
>> to make a contribution.  However, they would like me to be completely
>> sure of all formalities that must be followed in doing so.  For
>> example, do you have contributors sign an assignment of copyright or
>> some other contributor's agreement?  Are there any cases in which
>> contributions will not be covered by the same "BSD" license that CMake
>> is covered by. (be aware, that my patch is very small, and we are just
>> crossing t's).
>>
>> Any information would be appreciated.
> We do not have an official contributor's agreement that needs to be signed.
> But if your patch just blends stuff into the existing code base (crossing
> t's or dotting i's), then it becomes part of the existing code base, covered
> by the same license CMake is covered by.
> I am not a lawyer, but the intent of contributing code to an open source
> project is to allow that project to copy it around and freely distribute it.
> So if you want to keep any kind of copyright for yourself (or your company),
> do not contribute it unless you're willing to allow the project to do that
> even though you retain your own copyright. (You'll notice some of the module
> files have additional copyrights on top of the standard CMake copyright
> notice.)
>
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Steven
> You're welcome,
> David
>
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