Do not require ABOUT-NLS in source directory

[Gavin Smith]

The "gettextize" program from gettext installs a file ABOUT-NLS,
the sole contents of which are a web link:

<https://www.gnu.org/software/gettext/manual/html_node/Users.html>

The gettext documentation states about this file:

   The program ‘gettextize’ provides the following files...

  1. The ‘ABOUT-NLS’ file is copied in the main directory of your
     package, the one being at the top level.  This file contains a
     reference to the GNU gettext documentation.  It also avoids an
     error from Automake in packages that use the Automake option ‘gnu’
     or ‘gnits’: “error: required file ’./ABOUT-NLS’ not found”.

Users are unlikely ever to look at this file and it is pointless clutter
in a directory listing.  If the purpose of this file is to advertise
the gettext project and/or the Translation Project, or to give these
projects due credit, this would be better achieved in other ways.  The
web link is no use to someone accessing the file without Internet access.

It is one more file to consider when looking at the files installed by
"gettextize", making the job of a maintainer more difficult.  However,
"gettextize" will not be able to stop installing ABOUT-NLS while it is
an automake requirement.

Hence, please consider this patch to automake to remove ABOUT-NLS as
a requirement.

ABOUT-NLS is still distributed automatically after this change.

commit 7456b0eeb99cbecada41d5dbbd5f5f02d02ce0a1
Author: Gavin Smith <gavinsmith0123@gmail.com>
Date:   2024-10-20 09:55:48 +0100

    automake: do not require ABOUT-NLS
    
    * bin/automake.in (handle_gettext): Remove call to require_file for 
ABOUT-NLS
    * NEWS: Add notice.
    
    This may allow gettextize to stop installing this file in future.

diff --git a/NEWS b/NEWS
index d33323ccc..c733cad12 100644
--- a/NEWS
+++ b/NEWS
@@ -1,6 +1,14 @@
 For planned incompatibilities in a possible future Automake 2.0 release,
 please see NEWS-2.0 and start following the advice there now.
 
+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
+New in 1.x:
+
+* Miscellaneous changes
+
+   - Do not require the presence of an ABOUT-NLS file in the 'gnu'
+     strictness level
+
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
 New in 1.17:
diff --git a/bin/automake.in b/bin/automake.in
index a17f45236..6f73ae6fb 100644
--- a/bin/automake.in
+++ b/bin/automake.in
@@ -4549,8 +4549,6 @@ sub handle_gettext ()
        if ($seen_gettext_external && ! $seen_gettext_intl
            && grep ($_ eq 'intl', @subdirs));
     }
-
-  require_file ($ac_gettext_location, GNU, 'ABOUT-NLS');
 }
 
 # Emit makefile footer.