# Group Policies ###### tags: `policies` ## Contributions to Galacticus and Publication Rights Galacticus is open source. If you contribute code (or documentation, data files, etc.) to the Galacticus project you must agree to that code being made available under the terms of the [GPL v3 license](https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.en.html). This means that anyone can use the code for any purpose. They should, of course, still give credit (your contributions are recorded in the `git` [log](https://github.com/galacticusorg/galacticus/commits/master) of Galacticus, and you should also add your name to files you contribute to as described below), but they are not required to include you on publications which make use of Galacticus. ### Credit Your contributions to Galacticus are recorded in the `git` [log](https://github.com/galacticusorg/galacticus/commits/master) of Galacticus. You should also add your name to any file to which you contribute, by adding a line like this just after the license preamble in the file: ``` !+ Contributions to this file made by: Andrew Benson, Anne Author. ``` Names in such lines will be automatically included in the documentation. ### Group Publication Policy If you contribute to Galacticus while working as part of the Carnegie Observatories "group" - loosely defined as anyone affiliated (or previously affiliated) with Carnegie, or working closely with (now or previously) the group at Carnegie - then you have the right to be a co-author on any publication from the group that makes use of the code (or dataset, etc.) that you contributed in perpetuity. (You can, of course, decline co-authorship.) To facilitate this, new publications from the group that make use of Galacticus should be announced on the [#publications](https://galacticusworkspace.slack.com/archives/C052EJ8N9T7) Slack channel, preferably as soon as a reasonably complete draft is available (or sooner). It is the responsibility of individuals to ensure that they monitor this channel for such announcements.