Re: Time Stamping a Program in Ada-95

[Simon Wright <simon@pushface.org>]

Austin Obyrne <austin.obyrne@hotmail.com> writes:

> On Thursday, September 13, 2012 6:11:49 PM UTC+1, Austin Obyrne wrote:
>> Time Stamping a Program in Ada-95 If I ‘compile to listing’ using
>> the “Run – Compile to Listing” facility in Ada-95 I can get a time
>> stamp declaration of the day and exact time instant of that
>> compiling that is very useful in a court of law later as documentary
>> evidence but if I subsequently compile as usual later on i.e. just
>> by clicking on the ‘compile’ button in the toolbar of my editor it
>> overwrites that earlier time stamp – I think. Lemme explain a bit
>> better. When I complete a piece of development work that evolves as
>> a piece of software I will want to secure the copyright. Although
>> there are many ways of doing this the way I favour most is the
>> intrinsic time stamp method i.e. if I compile to listing I will get
>> a print-out of the compiler number and the exact time and day on
>> which it was last compiled. This is powerful evidence of
>> copyright. This is only useful however if it has not been
>> accidentally overwritten later by another compile-to-listing
>> operation by the same compiler or by a copy of that compiler. I want
>> to try and prevent that happening accidentally. Does anybody know
>> more about this – is it possible to do both without losing the time
>> stamp facility i.e. compile to listing and ordinary periodic
>> compiling from the tool bar also? If this is not possible to prevent
>> it should be brought to the notice of the powers that be in Ada as a
>> useful security function going begging ?? Your help would be
>> appreciated as usual. - adacrypt
>
> Just occurred to me -it isn't necesary to take any steps to prevent
> this happening if I make a hard copy of the original first-time
> compile-to-listing time stamp ??? -
>
> That would give me irrefutable copyright evidence surely ?
>
> I would still appreciate your views. - adacrypt

A computer-generated timestamp could easily be faked.

I would have thought you could fall back on sending a printout to
yourself through the mail and leaving the envelope sealed on receipt.

But IANAL.