@setfilename standards.info
@settitle GNU Coding Standards
@c This date is automagically updated when you save this file:
-@set lastupdate March 17, 2007
+@set lastupdate June 27, 2007
@c %**end of header
@dircategory GNU organization
like @code{ls} except that its default output format is always
multi-column format.
+
@node Graphical Interfaces
@section Standards for Graphical Interfaces
@cindex graphical user interface
doing the work to provide the functionality and the graphical interface,
these won't be much extra work.
+
@node Command-Line Interfaces
@section Standards for Command Line Interfaces
@cindex command-line interface
output the same information as invoking @samp{p.cgi --help} from the
command line.
-@table @code
-@cindex @samp{--version} option
-@item --version
-This option should direct the program to print information about its name,
-version, origin and legal status, all on standard output, and then exit
-successfully. Other options and arguments should be ignored once this
-is seen, and the program should not perform its normal function.
+@menu
+* --version:: The standard output for --version.
+* --help:: The standard output for --help.
+@end menu
+
+@node --version
+@subsection @option{--version}
+
+@cindex @samp{--version} output
+
+The standard @code{--version} option should direct the program to
+print information about its name, version, origin and legal status,
+all on standard output, and then exit successfully. Other options and
+arguments should be ignored once this is seen, and the program should
+not perform its normal function.
@cindex canonical name of a program
@cindex program's canonical name
program's version number, you can mention the package version number
just before the close-parenthesis.
-If you @strong{need} to mention the version numbers of libraries which
+If you @emph{need} to mention the version numbers of libraries which
are distributed separately from the package which contains this program,
you can do so by printing an additional line of version info for each
library you want to mention. Use the same format for these lines as for
copyright notice. If more than one copyright notice is called for, put
each on a separate line.
-Next should follow a brief statement that the program is free software,
-and that users are free to copy and change it on certain conditions. If
-the program is covered by the GNU GPL, say so here. Also mention that
-there is no warranty, to the extent permitted by law.
+Next should follow a line stating the license, preferably using one of
+abbrevations below, and a brief statement that the program is free
+software, and that users are free to copy and change it. Also mention
+that there is no warranty, to the extent permitted by law. See
+recommended wording below.
It is ok to finish the output with a list of the major authors of the
program, as a way of giving credit.
Here's an example of output that follows these rules:
@smallexample
-GNU Emacs 19.34.5
-Copyright (C) 1996 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
-GNU Emacs comes with NO WARRANTY,
-to the extent permitted by law.
-You may redistribute copies of GNU Emacs
-under the terms of the GNU General Public License.
-For more information about these matters,
-see the files named COPYING.
+GNU hello 2.3
+Copyright (C) 2007 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
+License GPLv3+: GNU GPL version 3 or later <http://gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html>
+This is free software: you are free to change and redistribute it.
+There is NO WARRANTY, to the extent permitted by law.
@end smallexample
You should adapt this to your program, of course, filling in the proper
versions' changes. You don't have to mention the name of the program in
these notices, if that is inconvenient, since it appeared in the first
line. (The rules are different for copyright notices in source files;
-see @ref{Copyright Notices,,,maintain,Information for GNU Maintainers}.)
+@pxref{Copyright Notices,,,maintain,Information for GNU Maintainers}.)
Translations of the above lines must preserve the validity of the
copyright notices (@pxref{Internationalization}). If the translation's
the English word ``Copyright''; translations into other languages do not
have legal significance.
+Finally, here is the table of our suggested license abbreviations.
+Any abbreviation can be followed by @samp{v@var{version}[+]}, meaning
+that particular version, or later versions with the @samp{+}, as shown
+above.
-@cindex @samp{--help} option
-@item --help
-This option should output brief documentation for how to invoke the
-program, on standard output, then exit successfully. Other options and
-arguments should be ignored once this is seen, and the program should
-not perform its normal function.
+In the case of exceptions for extra permissions with the GPL, we use
+@samp{/} for a separator; the version number can follow the license
+abbreviation as usual, as in the examples below.
+
+@table @asis
+@item GPL
+GNU General Public License, @url{http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html}.
+
+@item LGPL
+GNU Lesser General Public License, @url{http://www.gnu.org/licenses/lgpl.html}.
+
+@item GPL/Guile
+GNU GPL with the exception for Guile; for example, GPLv3+/Guile means
+the GNU GPL version 3 or later, with the extra exception for Guile.
+
+GNU GPL with the exception for Ada.
+
+@item Apache
+The Apache Software Foundation license,
+@url{http://www.apache.org/licenses}.
+
+@item Artistic
+The Artistic license used for Perl, @url{http://www.perlfoundation.org/legal}.
+
+@item Expat
+The Expat license, @url{http://www.jclark.com/xml/copying.txt}.
+
+@item MPL
+The Mozilla Public License, @url{http://www.mozilla.org/MPL/}.
+
+@item OBSD
+The original (4-clause) BSD license, incompatible with the GNU GPL
+@url{http://www.xfree86.org/3.3.6/COPYRIGHT2.html#6}.
+
+@item PHP
+The license used for PHP, @url{http://www.php.net/license/}.
+
+@item public domain
+The non-license that is being in the public domain,
+@url{http://www.gnu.org/licenses/license-list.html#PublicDomain}.
+
+@item Python
+The license for Python, @url{http://www.python.org/2.0.1/license.html}.
+
+@item RBSD
+The revised (3-clause) BSD, compatible with the GNU GPL,
+@url{http://www.xfree86.org/3.3.6/COPYRIGHT2.html#5}.
+
+@item X11
+The simple non-copyleft license used for most versions of the X Window
+system, @url{http://www.xfree86.org/3.3.6/COPYRIGHT2.html#3}.
+
+@item Zlib
+The license for Zlib, @url{http://www.gzip.org/zlib/zlib_license.html}.
+
+@end table
+
+More information about these licenses and many more are on the GNU
+licensing web pages,
+@url{http://www.gnu.org/licenses/license-list.html}.
+
+
+@node --help
+@subsection @option{--help}
+
+@cindex @samp{--help} output
+
+The standard @code{--help} option should output brief documentation
+for how to invoke the program, on standard output, then exit
+successfully. Other options and arguments should be ignored once this
+is seen, and the program should not perform its normal function.
@cindex address for bug reports
@cindex bug reports
@example
Report bugs to @var{mailing-address}.
@end example
-@end table
+
@node Option Table
@section Table of Long Options
projects / pspp / commitdiff