[Python-Dev] Aligning the packaging.python.org theme with the rest of the docs

[Nick Coghlan]

On 29 May 2017 at 01:15, David Mertz <mertz at gnosis.cx> wrote:
> I agree with MAL and have also been on the Trademarks Committee for 8-9
> years. Protecting an actual Mark like the logo is fine, as painful as it is
> to someone's say no to an attractive derived logo. But trying to protect a
> look-and-feel is way too far down the path of evil (it's what some
> proprietary companies we want to be different from do). Moreover, when when
> that's done it's not generally as trademark but as "trade dress"
> copyright... which is a concept I opposed ethically, but know it's the usual
> legal instrument.

I'm also fine with leaving the trade dress aspect completely
unenforced - the main question is whether or not folks are OK with
PyPA using a derivative of the CPython docs theme to make PyPA-related
documentation look more like the CPython docs, and hence more
official.

I do think it's appropriate for us to ask that question, as going down
this path means we're deliberately trading on the community trust
earned by the CPython core development team over the past 20+ years
specifically in order to help make PyPA's own documentation seem more
trustworthy to others.

If we're going to borrow somebody else's reputation like that, then it
seems reasonable to me for us to offer the people whose reputation
we're borrowing the courtesy of *asking first*, regardless of what the
law says we're technically allowed to do.

Here's an alternate wording for the README that would focus on those
considerations without explicitly asking folks not to use the theme:

"Note that when adopting this theme, you're also borrowing an element
of the trust and credibility established by the CPython core
developers over the years, as well as the legal credibility arising
from their close association with the Python Software Foundation.
That's fine, and you're welcome to do so for other Python community
projects if you so choose, but please keep in mind that in doing so
you're also choosing to become a co-steward of that collective trust
:)"

Regards,
Nick.

-- 
Nick Coghlan   |   ncoghlan at gmail.com   |   Brisbane, Australia