Justin Bertram created ACTIVEMQ6-87: ---------------------------------------
Summary: Strip @author tags from Java source Key: ACTIVEMQ6-87 URL: https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/ACTIVEMQ6-87 Project: Apache ActiveMQ 6 Issue Type: Bug Affects Versions: 6.0.0 Reporter: Justin Bertram Assignee: Justin Bertram Fix For: 6.1.0 Way back in 2004 [the Apache Board officially discouraged the use of 'author' tags|http://www.apache.org/foundation/records/minutes/2004/board_minutes_2004_02_18.txt] in source code. They are not _banned_, but merely discouraged. However, I think it's probably a good idea to strip them from our source all the same. Other projects (e.g. [Camel|https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/CAMEL-1812]) have done the same. Here are a few other reasons to remove them (taken from [here|https://issues.jboss.org/browse/JBRULES-2895]): The author tags in the java files are a maintenance nightmare: - A large percentage is wrong, incomplete or inaccurate. - Most of the time, it only contains the original author. Many files are completely refactored/expanded by other authors. - Git is accurate, that is the canonical source to find the correct author. To find the correct author of a piece of code, you always have to double check with git, you cannot suppose the author on the author tag alone. - Author tags promote "code ownership", which is bad in the long run. - If people work on a piece they perceive as being owned by someone else, they tend to: -- only fix what they are assigned to fix, not everything that's broken. -- discard responsibility if that code doesn't work properly. -- be scared of stepping of the feet of the owner - Instead of "code ownership", we need "module leadership" and "peer reviews". -- This message was sent by Atlassian JIRA (v6.3.4#6332)