Subject: Re: [PATCH] commit: Add commit.signoff configuration option

From: Collin Funk <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 04 Jun 2025 18:46:52 -0700

Junio C Hamano <[email-masked]> writes:

> Chris Down <[email-masked]> writes:
>
>> Looking at public dotfiles, many users already work around this with
>> global shell aliases for "commit --signoff". This creates the exact
>> problem
>
> Users conciously using a general customization mechanism to express
> specific intent like the above is one thing.  Project giving users a
> tool that is specifically designed to casually set and forget before
> even understanding the implications is another.
>
> So no, anything that specifically targets commit.signoff would not
> fall into the same category as end-users creating aliases for
> themselves to use, I would have to say.  And we do not want to give
> an impression that we give tools specifically designed to encourage
> users making casual sign-offs.

I agree.

Although the FSF copyright assignment needed to contribute to some GNU
projects is time-consuming, it forces the contributor to consider "Do I
own the rights to the code I create?" This isn't the case in many US
states if you are an exempt employee, which most Software Developers
are.

Similarly, when you sign-off to the DCO you also acknowledge that you
have the rights to license your work under the projects license. By
adding this option, I worry that contributors will just configure it
globally as a prerequisite to their work being accepted, and not
consider whether they are even allowed to make the contribution in the
first place.

Collin