Bug#803519: lintian: Search for the string "legal" in every file, as it is gererally misused
Axel Beckert <abe@debian.org> writes:
> I'd restrict it to packaging (i.e. the debian/ directory) and explicitly
> exclude the file debian/copyright as any appearance of the word "legal"
> or "illegal" in there is very likely a valid (sic!) usage.
Indeed, encouraging people to get into arguments with upstream about this
seems like a bad idea. The wording choice portions of the GNU coding
standards are highly controversial, to say the least.
I'm worried about false positives from a rule like this. "Illegal" is a
valid English word that frequently is the word intended. (For example,
consider intrusion detection systems designed to look for illegal activity
from one's local system.) The GNU usage recommendation is in a specific
context around actions in software, and Lintian is not bright enough to
read for context.
--
Russ Allbery (rra@debian.org) <http://www.eyrie.org/~eagle/>
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