GNU Common C++ 1.2.0 and the patented todo tatoo...

[David Sugar]

This evening we are distributing the first release candidate (rc1)
for GNU Common C++ 1.2.0 portable class framework, for immediate
testing.  The rc1 release is available for immediate download from:

http://www.crackrabbit.com/~dav2/testing/commoncpp2-1.2.0rc1.tar.gz

This test release includes initial support for ipv6 functionality in
GNU Common C++ core socket classes, as well as some changes to Conditional
and Event classes, and other smaller changes and bug fixes.  We need people 
from the list to help test this new release series.

We have in the past used doxygen (http://www.stack.nl/~dimitri/doxygen), 
an excellent source code to documentation generator available under the
GNU GPL, and we will continue to do so with this and future versions of GNU
Common C++.  Naturally, we have in the past and will continue to use
doxygen's @todo tags to mark notes in source code on future changes.  
Prior to doxygen, in my packages we would embed a todo marker and grep 
out todo lists into a text file.  Doxygen itself is based on Doc++, 
and that, I believe, was inspired in turn by javadoc.  Embedding todo 
lists in source and extracting them into a list is a much older 
practice than javadoc, however.

I believe it's important to secure for programmers everywhere the
freedom to continue using widely known and common methods rather than
submit to a convicted monopolist, which on one hand claims the need for
stronger copyright, contract law, and patent protection for it's own
products which in practice, like all software, is based on the works of
others past, while at the same time choosing to deny or claim those
same privileges to the works of others past and present for itself and
it's proxies, and to deny those in the future the same privileges to use
works past that it itself has enjoyed.  While there is a legal
doctrine known for misuse of copyright, it is a shame there is neither
a crime nor even a penalty associated with submitting false patent
claims.

Fortunately, doxygen is developed in Germany, which, as part of the
European Union, does not as yet legally enforce software patents, and
so the works of others past that it is based on continues to be freely
available for use today without potential restrictions.  However, my 
fondest hopes are not simply that the European Union formally reject 
software patents, but that the people of my country and it's government 
may grow enough spine to eliminate the practice of software patents 
here as well.   Meanwhile, I am now considering getting my first 
tatoo...