Re: [boost] [home page] Marketing?

From: David Abrahams (dave_at_[hidden])
Date: 2005-07-01 11:17:22

Beman Dawes <bdawes_at_[hidden]> writes:

> While the redesigned Boost home page is informative and visually 
> attractive, it doesn't seem to me to have much marketing punch because it 
> doesn't give a viewer any idea of how useful and successful Boost has 
> become.
>
> Thanks to stylesheet help from Rene Rivera, I've drafted a new section 
> (currently entitled "Mini-FAQ") that is supposed to convey the marketing 
> message that Boost is a success and useful to a lot of people.
>
> See draft version at http://www.esva.net/~beman/boost-home/index.htm
>
> Comments? Do others think this is worth adding?

Yes!

It should be re-titled (not sure what -- "Adoption" sounds a little
too vague), and moved up above Participation.  Some other remarks:

  How many C++ programmers use Boost? Lots. 

Be specific.  I would drop "Lots;" it doesn't add anything.

  100,000 or so download each release from SourceForge.

Good.

  Popular Linux distributions include Boost.

Be specific.  Which ones?

  Many organizations make Boost available to all their programmers via
  internal servers.

Your point being that the number of downloads is misleadingly small?
If so, spell it out.

  What do others say about Boost? Scott Meyers says "Familiarize
  yourself with Boost." That's item 55 in Effective C++, 3rd Ed.

You can also quote Herb Sutter
(see http://www.boost-consulting.com/boost.html) if you like.

  Should I or my organization use Boost? Indirectly, you're probably
  already a user, or soon will be, via the C++ Standard Library's TR1,
  or via programs which use Boost like Adobe Acrobat Reader 7.0. So
  download Boost and start enjoying it directly!

A little too perky.  And I betcha few people know what TR1 is.  And
nobody has it yet.  And the paragraph doesn't answer the question it
poses.  So I suggest:

  Should I or my organization use Boost?  Yes.  Indirectly, you're
  probably already a user, via popular programs like Adobe Acrobat
  Reader 7.0 that use Boost libraries internally.  Boost libraries
  give C++ programmers worldwide an edge in developing reliable and
  maintainable programs.  By using Boost, you will increase the
  expressiveness of your code and reduce the amount of time and code
  needed to build an application.  Because you won't need to write,
  test, and maintain a broad category of foundation components, you'll
  be able to concentrate on code that directly addresses your
  application domain.  

I have this idea for what developers produce when they use Boost:
"functionality, not frameworks."  Nice alliteration, but I don't know
how to fit it in.

-- 
Dave Abrahams
Boost Consulting
www.boost-consulting.com