Re: [boost] 5 Observations - My experience with the boost libraries

Subject: Re: [boost] 5 Observations - My experience with the boost libraries
From: Edward Diener (eldiener_at_[hidden])
Date: 2010-03-24 15:37:57

On 3/24/2010 2:57 PM, Emil Dotchevski wrote:
> On Wed, Mar 24, 2010 at 11:26 AM, Edward Diener<eldiener_at_[hidden]>  wrote:
>> That's why I am suggesting that Boost create some sort of policy so that
>> maintenance of an actively used Boost library be transferred to others
>> whenever the original library author(s) no longer wish to maintain the
>> library.
>
> Why do we need an official policy if someone has to volunteer anyway?
> It's not like there's an army of volunteers and we have to be careful
> to pick the right candidate. :)

Because there are libraries of which questions are asked, bug reports 
are written, and suggestions are made which get absolutely no response 
from the person who is the author/maintainer of the library. If none of 
the Boost leaders pay any attention to this situation then the feeling 
by end-users that a library is not really being supported will continue 
and people will stop using that library. If Boost had some sort of 
policy by which authors/maintainers of a library, who are no longer 
paying any attention to it in response to Boost users, get relieved of 
the responsibility of supporting the library and someone else is chosen 
to maintain it instead, it would be good for the end-users and for Boost 
developers as well. Of course this would mean that whatever "rights" 
once a library is submitted to Boost ( I am not a legal expert ) which 
the author of a Boost library retains can be removed if the author does 
not support the library any longer, and that this is part of Boost policy.