| <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" |
| "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"> |
| <!-- |
| Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one |
| or more contributor license agreements. See the NOTICE file |
| distributed with this work for additional information |
| regarding copyright ownership. The ASF licenses this file |
| to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the |
| "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance |
| with the License. You may obtain a copy of the License at |
| |
| http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0 |
| |
| Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, |
| software distributed under the License is distributed on an |
| "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY |
| KIND, either express or implied. See the License for the |
| specific language governing permissions and limitations |
| under the License. |
| --> |
| <html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"> |
| <head> |
| <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /> |
| <link rel="stylesheet" href="../style/bootstrap-1-3-0-min.css" type="text/css" /> |
| <link rel="stylesheet" href="../style/style.css" type="text/css" /> |
| <link rel="alternate" title="general@incubator.apache.org Archives" type="application/atom+xml" href="http://mail-archives.apache.org/mod_mbox/incubator-general/?format=atom" /> |
| <title>Podling Name Search Guide - Apache Incubator</title> |
| |
| </head> |
| <body> |
| <div class="container"> |
| <div class="row"> |
| <div class="span12"> |
| <a href="http://www.apache.org/"><img src="http://incubator.apache.org/images/asf_logo_wide_small.png" alt="The Apache Software Foundation" border="0" style="margin-top: 2px" width="62%"/></a> |
| </div> |
| <div class="span4"> |
| <a href="http://incubator.apache.org/"><img src="../images/egg-logo2.png" alt="Apache Incubator" border="0"/></a> |
| </div> |
| </div> |
| <div class="row"><div class="span16"><hr noshade="noshade" size="1"/></div></div> |
| |
| <div class="row"> |
| <div class="span4"> |
| <form action="http://www.google.com/search" method="get"> |
| <input value="incubator.apache.org" name="sitesearch" type="hidden"/> |
| <input size="20" name="q" id="query" type="text" value="search..." |
| onclick="if(this.value == 'search...') {this.value = ''}"/> |
| <input name="Search" value="Go" type="submit"/> |
| </form> |
| <div class="menuheader">General</div> |
| <menu compact="compact"> |
| <li><a href="../index.html">Welcome</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../incubation/Process_Description.html">Incubation Overview</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../incubation/Incubation_Policy.html">Incubation Policy</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../guides/index.html">Incubation Guides</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../incubation/Roles_and_Responsibilities.html">Roles and Responsibilities</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../faq.html">General FAQ</a></li> |
| <li><a href="http://wiki.apache.org/incubator">Incubator Wiki</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../whoweare.html">Who We Are</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../sitemap.html">Site Map</a></li> |
| </menu> |
| <div class="menuheader">Status</div> |
| <menu compact="compact"> |
| <li><a href="../projects/index.html">Project List</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../clutch.html">Clutch Report</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../ip-clearance/index.html">IP Clearance</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../history/index.html">Incubator History</a></li> |
| </menu> |
| <div class="menuheader">Entry Guides</div> |
| <menu compact="compact"> |
| <li><a href="../guides/proposal.html">Proposal Guide</a></li> |
| </menu> |
| <div class="menuheader">Podling Guides</div> |
| <menu compact="compact"> |
| <li><a href="../guides/committer.html">Podling Committers</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../guides/ppmc.html">Podling PMC (PPMC)</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../guides/mentor.html">Podling Mentor</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../guides/releasemanagement.html">Podling Releases</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../guides/branding.html">Podling Branding/Publicity</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../guides/sites.html">Podling Websites</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../guides/graduation.html">Graduation</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../guides/retirement.html">Retirement</a></li> |
| </menu> |
| <div class="menuheader">Other Guides</div> |
| <menu compact="compact"> |
| <li><a href="../guides/participation.html">Participation</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../faq.html">General FAQ</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../guides/pmc.html">Incubator PMC (IPMC)</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../guides/chair.html">IPMC Chair</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../guides/lists.html">Mailing Lists</a></li> |
| <li><a href="../guides/website.html">Incubator Website</a></li> |
| </menu> |
| <div class="menuheader">ASF</div> |
| <menu compact="compact"> |
| <li><a href="http://www.apache.org/foundation/how-it-works.html">How Apache Works</a></li> |
| <li><a href="http://www.apache.org/dev/">Developer Documentation</a></li> |
| <li><a href="http://www.apache.org/foundation/">Foundation</a></li> |
| <li><a href="http://www.apache.org/foundation/sponsorship.html">Sponsor Apache</a></li> |
| <li><a href="http://www.apache.org/foundation/thanks.html">Thanks</a></li> |
| </menu> |
| <!-- start Ads Server --> |
| <iframe src="http://www.apache.org/ads/buttonbar.html" |
| style="border-width:0; float: left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" |
| width="135" height="265"></iframe> |
| <!-- end Ads Server --> |
| </div> |
| |
| <div class="span12"> |
| <h2><img src="../images/redarrow.gif" />Podling Name Search Guide</h2> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <ul> |
| <li> |
| <a href="#intro">Introduction</a> |
| <ul> |
| <li><a href="#meet-the-team">Meet The Apache Branding Team</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#trademarks">Trademarks</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#alv2">Trademarks And The Apache License</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#naming-hints">What Makes A Name Good</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#name-search">Podling Suitable Name Search</a></li> |
| </ul> |
| </li> |
| <li> |
| <a href="#search">Conducting A Suitable Name Search</a> |
| <ul> |
| <li> |
| <a href="#elimination">Eliminate Unsuitable Names</a> |
| <ul> |
| <li><a href="#main-sequence">The Main Sequence</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#ethical-suitability">Appropriateness</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#uniqueness-what-and-why">Unique Enough Names</a></li> |
| <li> |
| <a href="#uniqueness-how-to">How To Collect Evidence Of Uniqueness</a> |
| <ul> |
| <li><a href="#evidence-oss">Evidence Of Open Source Adoption</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#evidence-registration">Evidence Of Registration</a></li> |
| <li><a href="#evidence-web">Evidence Of Use On The World Wide Web</a></li> |
| </ul> |
| </li> |
| </ul> |
| </li> |
| </ul> |
| </li> |
| </ul> |
| </div> |
| <h2 id='intro'><img src="../images/redarrow.gif" />Introduction</h2> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p> |
| This guide is <strong>not</strong> <em>legal advice</em> or <em>legal opinion</em>: |
| <strong>do not</strong> use it as a substitute. |
| Its aims are education and information <strong>only</strong>. |
| </p> |
| <p> |
| This process filters out unsuitable names early, |
| reducing the legal resources required and |
| limiting the potential disruption to a community of a forced name change |
| later. A smooth path, but not the only one. If there are reasons |
| why this road isn't right for your podling, |
| consult <a href="http://mail-archives.apache.org/mod_mbox/incubator-general/">incubator general</a>. |
| </p> |
| <h3 id='meet-the-team'>Meet The Apache Branding Team</h3> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p> |
| Names <a href="http://www.apache.org/foundation/marks/#whoweare">fall</a> within the responsibilities of the |
| <a href="http://www.apache.org/foundation/">V.P., Brand Management</a> (and |
| <a href="http://www.apache.org/foundation/marks/#whoweare">team</a>). Please start by reading:</p> |
| <ul> |
| <li>the <a href="http://www.apache.org/foundation/marks/" rel="tag">Apache Trademark Policy</a> <br />(which introduces trademarks and outlines our policy);</li> |
| <li>the <a href="http://www.apache.org/foundation/marks/faq/" rel="tag">Apache Trademark FAQs</a> <br />(which answers questions asked by downstream consumers); and</li> |
| <li>the <a href="http://www.apache.org/foundation/marks/pmcs.html">Apache Project Branding Requirements</a> <br />(which guides PMCs).</li> |
| </ul> |
| <p>For podlings in the Incubator, naming issues are managed co-operatively by the Brand and Incubator communities. |
| Rules for podlings include all branding requirements for PMCs, plus a few extras. |
| </p> |
| </div> |
| <h3 id='trademarks'>Trademarks</h3> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p> |
| Trademark law is a complex subject. |
| Distinctive differences from other intellectual property laws (such as patent or copyright) mean that |
| intuition or knowledge gained from other areas may not be applicable. |
| The <a href="http://www.apache.org/foundation">Apache Software Foundation</a> is |
| a <a href="http://www.apache.org/foundation/faq.html#is-ASF-a-corporation">US corporation</a>. |
| Developing some understanding of the basic principles of US trademark law is therefore important. |
| </p> |
| <p> |
| Please read: |
| </p> |
| <ul> |
| <li><a href="http://www.apache.org/foundation/marks/#principles">Description of key trademark principles</a> for Apache projects;</li> |
| <li><abbr title="United States Patent and Trademark Office">USPTO</abbr> trademark |
| <ul> |
| <li><a href="http://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/index.jsp">home</a> page</li> |
| <li><a href="http://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/basics/index.jsp">basics</a>, and follow the links for materials;</li> |
| </ul></li> |
| <li><a href="http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/US_Trademark_Law">US Trademark Law</a> WikiBook; and</li> |
| <li><a href="http://www.ifosslr.org/ifosslr/article/view/11/37">Passport Without A Visa: Open Source Software Licensing and Trademarks |
| </a> by Tiki Dare and Harvey Anderson |
| in the <a href="http://www.ifosslr.org/">International Free and Open Source Software Law Review</a>.</li> |
| </ul> |
| </div> |
| <h3 id='alv2'>Trademarks And The Apache License</h3> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p> |
| Like <a href="http://www.ifosslr.org/ifosslr/article/view/11/37">many</a> |
| <a href="http://www.opensource.org" rel="tag">open source</a> licenses, the |
| <a href="http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0.html">Apache License, Version 2.0</a> |
| focuses on granting copyright and patent rights to the public. |
| The <em>trademark</em> section permits only very limited trademark rights. |
| </p> |
| <blockquote cite="http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0.html#trademarks"> |
| <p><strong>6. Trademarks.</strong> |
| This License does not grant permission to use the trade names, trademarks, |
| service marks, or product names of the Licensor, except as required for |
| reasonable and customary use in describing the origin of the Work and |
| reproducing the content of the NOTICE file. |
| </p> |
| </blockquote> |
| <p class="attribution"><a href="http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0.html#trademarks">Apache License, Version 2.0 |
| </a></p> |
| <p> |
| All Apache projects share the Apache License. This issues standard <strong>copy</strong> |
| and <strong>patent</strong> rights to |
| downstream consumers. <strong>Trademark</strong> rights for Apache products are issued and managed independently, |
| beyond the Apache License. This allows Apache communities to use trademark law to protect their reputation and that of the |
| <a href="http://www.apache.org/foundation/">Foundation</a>, within the broader |
| framework provided by the Brand team. |
| </p> |
| </div> |
| <h3 id='naming-hints'>What Makes A Name Good</h3> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p>Good names for commercial products or <code>UNIX</code> utilities have tended to work less well here at Apache. |
| Many successful Apache project names are memorable, unusual and a little |
| <a href="http://www.sdtimes.com/TOP_FIVE_HEAD_SCRATCHINGEST_NAMES_FOR_APACHE_PROJECTS/By_Victoria_Reitano/About_APACHE_and_HADOOP_and_HARMONY_and_MYSQL_and_OODT_and_YAY/35959">whimsical</a>. |
| These qualities also happen to be useful when it comes to securing trademark protection. |
| Have fun. Be creative. |
| </p> |
| </div> |
| <h3 id='name-search'>Podling Suitable Name Search</h3> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p> |
| The initial <a href="http://incubator.apache.org/guides/proposal.html">proposal</a> |
| establishes a working name for the new podling. |
| Often some discussion and filtering of suitable names happens during the election |
| process but this proposed name is <strong>not</strong> final, only <em>provisional</em>. |
| The community may choose to change it. Or the community may discover that the name is unsuitable: |
| in which case a suitable new name must be found. |
| </p> |
| <p> |
| A podling needs to discover whether a name is suitable. |
| The Incubator community calls this process the <em>suitable name search</em>. |
| This avoids any potential confusion with phrases like |
| <em>trademark search</em> with technical meanings in the trademark community. |
| Please be careful with language. In particular: |
| </p> |
| <ul> |
| <li>avoid using loaded technical legal terms;</li> |
| <li>use plain, simple English to describe what you did and what you found;</li> |
| <li>avoid speculation; and</li> |
| <li>don't offer <em>advice</em> or <em>opinions</em>.</li> |
| </ul> |
| <p> |
| A suitable name search must be successfully completed before a podling can graduate. |
| This isn't the only way one might be done, just a smooth path. |
| </p> |
| <p> |
| Names are an essential part of building a brand and community. |
| Switching names wastes the efforts put into establishing the original name. |
| Therefore complete this task as soon as possible. |
| </p> |
| </div> |
| </div> |
| <h2 id='search'><img src="../images/redarrow.gif" />Conducting A Suitable Name Search</h2> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p>The aim - to find a name that is acceptable to the community and is not unsuitable.</p> |
| <p> |
| A suitable name search has public and private elements. |
| The <a href="https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/PODLINGNAMESEARCH">tracker</a> provides the public record. |
| Incubator best practice evolves over time, documentation lags. |
| The public records of past searches are a primary source of guidance. |
| Review now the records of previous searches, beginning with the most recent then working back. |
| </p> |
| <p> |
| The public record consists of <em>actions</em> (how you searched) and <em>facts</em> (what your search found). In particular, |
| in <strong>all</strong> public forums (mailing lists, issue trackers and so on): |
| </p> |
| <ul> |
| <li><strong>Do not</strong> speculate.</li> |
| <li><strong>Do not</strong> use loaded technical legal language.</li> |
| <li><strong>Do not</strong> offer |
| <ul> |
| <li>opinions,</li> |
| <li>advice,</li> |
| <li>interpretation, or</li> |
| <li>analysis.</li> |
| </ul> |
| </li> |
| </ul> |
| <p> |
| Use the public lists in the Incubator to ask questions about <em>how</em> the search should be conducted. |
| Once the information is collected and collated, then ask the trademark team to help interpret and analyse these results |
| on the private lists, copying in the PPMC. Finally discuss the results of your investigation on the private PPMC list. |
| Whether a name is suitable or unsuitable (or somewhere in between) should be recorded when the issue is closed. |
| </p> |
| <h3 id='elimination'>Eliminate Unsuitable Names</h3> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p>To be suitable, a name needs to be</p> |
| <ul> |
| <li>judged <em>appropriate</em> by the wider community; and</li> |
| <li><em>unique enough</em> to avoid confusion</li> |
| </ul> |
| <p> |
| Facts and activities performed are <a href="https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/PODLINGNAMESEARCH">recorded</a> for the public. |
| Interpretation and analysis of these facts happens on private mailing lists, the PPMC private in the first instance. |
| Whether the name proved suitable or unsuitable should be entered into the public record |
| but take care to use our language (<em>ethically unsuitable</em> or |
| <em>not unique enough</em>) and to avoid loaded legal terms. |
| </p> |
| <h4 id='main-sequence'>The Main Sequence</h4> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p> |
| Every podling is unique, but using a <a href="http://outreach.atnf.csiro.au/education/senior/astrophysics/stellarevolution_mainsequence.html">cosmic</a> |
| metaphor, most fit into a main sequence. For podlings on the main sequence, |
| most of the bugs should have been squashed and rough edges documented away, so expect a smooth journey. |
| Away from the main sequence, process may need to be grown, documentation is likely be sparse |
| and progress less smooth. |
| </p> |
| <p> |
| The main sequence is described here. This well known path is |
| appropriate for almost all podlings. |
| If there are good reasons to think that your podling is a special case, discuss this with the |
| <a href="http://mail-archives.apache.org/mod_mbox/incubator-general/">Incubator community</a> |
| and reach consensus on the way forward. |
| </p> |
| </div> |
| <h4 id='ethical-suitability'>Appropriateness</h4> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p> |
| Some names are not appropriate for open source projects. |
| Acceptability under |
| <a href="http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/15/1052.shtml">US Trademark Law</a> is a good base line. |
| This excludes marks that |
| </p> |
| <blockquote cite="http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/15/1052.shtml"> |
| Consists of or comprises immoral, deceptive, or scandalous matter; |
| or matter which may disparage or falsely suggest a connection with persons, |
| living or dead, institutions, beliefs, or national symbols, or bring them into contempt, or disrepute; |
| </blockquote> |
| <p class="attribution"><a href="http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/15/1052.shtml">US Code 15:1052 |
| </a></p> |
| <p> |
| Proposals with inappropriate names are unlikely to pass the initial hustings but spend a few moments considering |
| whether anything has been missed. Check for alternative meanings, perhaps in foreign languages. |
| </p> |
| </div> |
| <h4 id='uniqueness-what-and-why'>Unique Enough Names</h4> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p> |
| The name needs be unique enough to avoid confusion with software that already exists. |
| For the community to be able to protect its reputation for quality and openness, |
| its name needs to unique enough to have potential as a trademark. |
| </p> |
| <p> |
| But this isn't only about being able to register trademark protection. |
| Ethics also plays a role. Even where a name may offer enough protection, existing adoption |
| of the name by an active community may mean that the choice needs to be eliminated on ethical grounds. |
| There is some judgment involved in this decision. So, involve the wider Incubator community if a name is already |
| used. |
| </p> |
| </div> |
| <h4 id='uniqueness-how-to'>How To Collect Evidence Of Uniqueness</h4> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p> |
| To decide whether a potential name is <em>unique enough</em> to be suitable |
| </p> |
| <ol> |
| <li>Collect evidence about current name usage.</li> |
| <li><a href="https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/PODLINGNAMESEARCH">Record</a> the facts.</li> |
| <li>Analyse and interpret these facts; in private with help from the brand team.</li> |
| <li>Reach consensus about whether the name is unique enough.</li> |
| <li><a href="https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/PODLINGNAMESEARCH">Record</a> whether the name is suitable.</li> |
| <li>If unsuitable then the community should pick a more unique name and repeat this process.</li> |
| </ol> |
| <h5 id='evidence-oss'>Evidence Of Open Source Adoption</h5> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p> |
| Existing adoption amongst another active open source community may give ethical |
| reasons for eliminating a name. This is an example of a condition with a fractal |
| boundary. Not every name which has been used before need be eliminated as unsuitable |
| but this is an issue which needs to be discussed more widely and |
| a consensus reached with the broad |
| <a href="http://mail-archives.apache.org/mod_mbox/incubator-general/">Incubator community</a>. |
| </p> |
| <p> |
| Look for evidence of existing adoption amongst open source communities by searching well known |
| foundries (for example <a href="http://www.github.com">GitHub</a> and |
| <a href="http://www.sourceforge.net">Sourceforge</a>) |
| and the web (use several search engines for example <a href="http://www.bing.com">Bing</a>, |
| <a href="http://www.google.com">Google</a> and <a href="http://www.yahoo.com">Yahoo</a>). |
| Review recent <a href="https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/PODLINGNAMESEARCH">records</a> |
| for contemporary details about where to search. |
| <a href="https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/PODLINGNAMESEARCH">Record</a> each search and describe the results. |
| </p> |
| <p> |
| If the name been used by the same community before it arrived at Apache, that's fine but should be noted in the |
| <a href="https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/PODLINGNAMESEARCH">record</a>. |
| </p> |
| </div> |
| <h5 id='evidence-registration'>Evidence Of Registration</h5> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p> |
| A number of online resources exist which may help to discover evidence of |
| competing registered trademarks. |
| Not every trademark is registered. Not every registered trademark is listed in these resources. |
| Even if evidence is found of existing registrations, |
| this does not necessary eliminate the proposed name. Just |
| <a href="https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/PODLINGNAMESEARCH">record</a> the facts. |
| Leave analysis and interpretation to private lists. |
| When a search returns a large number of hits, focus on live registrations related to software. |
| </p> |
| <p> |
| The foremost online resource is <abbr title="Trademark Electronic Search System">TESS</abbr> run by |
| <abbr title="United States Patent and Trademark Office">USPTO</abbr>. Before using |
| TESS, please browse the documentation links from |
| <a href="http://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/index.jsp">USPTO trademark home</a>. |
| </p> |
| <p> |
| Other resources which allow cheap searches of their databases exist but are often |
| ephemeral. Review the <a href="https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/PODLINGNAMESEARCH">records</a> |
| for the state of this art. |
| </p> |
| </div> |
| <h5 id='evidence-web'>Evidence Of Use On The World Wide Web</h5> |
| <div class="section-content"> |
| <p> |
| Registration of trademark is not required. Rights may also be obtained by use of a mark in commerce. |
| </p> |
| <p> |
| Use a variety of web search engines (for example, <a href="http:/www.bing.com">bing</a>, <a href="http://www.google.com">google</a> |
| and <a href="http://search.yahoo.com">yahoo</a>) to survey usage on the world wide web. |
| </p> |
| <ul> |
| <li>The |
| results returned by a search for the name itself may provide evidence of well known usages of the term.</li> |
| <li>The results returned by searching for the name and <code>software</code> may provide evidence of |
| existing use in trade. You may also want to search for the name and key functionality the software provides |
| and name and <code>open source</code></li> |
| </ul> |
| </div> |
| </div> |
| </div> |
| </div> |
| </div> |
| </div> |
| |
| <div class="row"><div class="span16"><hr noshade="noshade" size="1"/></div></div> |
| <div class="row"> |
| <div class="span16 footer"> |
| Copyright © 2009-2016 The Apache Software Foundation<br /> |
| Licensed under the <a href="http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0">Apache License, Version 2.0</a>.<br/> |
| Apache Incubator, Apache, the Apache feather logo, and the Apache Incubator project logo are trademarks of The Apache Software Foundation. |
| |
| |
| </div> |
| </div> |
| </div> |
| </body> |
| </html> |
