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Re: Why not contribute? (to GCC)
On 27 April 2010 23:27, Alfred M. Szmidt <ams@gnu.org> wrote:
> ? As for flexible, it seems clear that the current form is not
> ? sufficiently personalized, which makes it more difficult to get it
> ? signed by an employer.
>
> If you need something specific, you should contact legal@gnu.org.
> They are quite flexible, I do not know where people got the idea that
> they are not.
But this is precisely the problem we are discussing. Lack of
information and clarity. I know they are very flexible because I
drafted my form together with the legal department of my university
and they just accepted it. However, it was just a bold move on my part
to get things moving when my university told they will never sign the
original form. But this thread shows precisely that:
1) The back-and-forth is too much for casual contributors. If it is
more effort to do the legal work than to submit the first patch, then
they will never submit any patch at all.
2) Potential contributors are lost as to what changes to make. I was
lucky that someone helped me to draft the document but this is
probably an exception.
3) Depending on the complexity of the organisation, you may have one
chance to get the paper signed. Afterwards, the organisation won't
bother again to consider the issue. Even in my case, I had to go in
person and wait for hours to get the paper that they drafted signed by
them.
Cheers,
Manuel.