--- a/doc/maintain.texi
+++ b/doc/maintain.texi
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@
 @c For double-sided printing, uncomment:
 @c @setchapternewpage odd
 @c This date is automagically updated when you save this file:
-@set lastupdate December 6, 2005
+@set lastupdate December 9, 2005
 @c %**end of header
 
 @dircategory GNU organization
@@ -428,14 +428,14 @@
 @section Copyright Notices
 @cindex copyright notices in program files
 
-You should maintain a proper copyright notice and a license notice in
-each nontrivial file in the package.  (Any file more than ten lines
-long is nontrivial for this purpose.)  This includes header files and
-interface definitions for building or running the program,
-documentation files, and any supporting files.  If a file has been
-explicitly placed in the public domain, then instead of a copyright
-notice, it should have a notice saying explicitly that it is in the
-public domain.
+You should maintain a proper copyright notice and a license
+notice in each nontrivial file in the package.  (Any file more than ten
+lines long is nontrivial for this purpose.)  This includes header files
+and interface definitions for
+building or running the program, documentation files, and any supporting
+files.  If a file has been explicitly placed in the public domain, then
+instead of a copyright notice, it should have a notice saying explicitly
+that it is in the public domain.
 
 Even image files and sound files should contain copyright notices and
 license notices, if they can.  Some formats do not have room for textual
@@ -470,10 +470,13 @@
 translations may use C-in-a-circle in locales where that symbol is
 known to work.
 
-To update the list of year numbers, add each year in which you change
-the package.  (Here we assume you're using a publicly accessible
-revision control server, so that every revision installed is also
-immediately and automatically published.)
+To update the list of year numbers, add each year in which you have
+made nontrivial changes to the package.  (Here we assume you're using
+a publicly accessible revision control server, so that every revision
+installed is also immediately and automatically published.)  Several
+trivial changes that add up to a nontrivial change do count as such.
+When you add the new year, you should add it in the copyright notice
+of each file of the package.
 
 Don't delete old year numbers, though; they can indicate when older
 versions might theoretically go into the public domain.  If you copy a
@@ -507,6 +510,7 @@
 displayed when the program starts up.  This copyright notice should
 mention the year of completion of the most recent major version; it
 can mention years of completion of previous major versions, but that
+is optional.
 
 
 @node License Notices