Re: CppCast: Boost, The Beman Project and Beyond

From: Ion Gaztañaga (igaztanaga_at_[hidden])
Date: 2024-06-16 20:36:31

El 14/06/2024 a las 16:05, Niall Douglas via Boost escribió:
> Given that some on here were expressing surprise at recent goings on, I
> thought in case nobody had seen it yet listening to this might be useful:
> 
> https://cppcast.com/boost-the_beman_project_and_beyond/
> 
> Our own Zach Laine explains some of what's been going on behind the scenes.
> 
> Niall

Hi,

I hope the best to this new project, I really think standard library 
additions will benefit from having open and peer reviewed 
implementations available online, avoiding the "direct to standard" risk.

Boost foundation minutes from April 
(https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zMKUX3nfdcOXT6nUIU4M_YRlCU4ywGoG40ouo3IKydM/edit?pli=1#heading=h.qbqm6ftp7chl) 
state (and I think it is explicitly mentioned in the podcast) that 
"Beman Project" is "a new initiative separate from Boost that gets back 
to its original purpose of improvements to the standard library".

However, Beman's Boost proposal from 1998 
(https://www.boost.org/users/proposal.pdf) doesn't say so:

------

"A world-wide web site containing a repository of free C++ class 
libraries would be of great benefit to the C++ community. Although other 
sites supply specific libraries or provide links to libraries, there is 
currently no well-known web site that acts as a general repository for 
C++ libraries. The vision is of a site where programmers can find 
libraries they need, post libraries they would like to share, and act as 
a focal point to encourage innovative C++ library development. An online 
peer review process is envisioned to ensure library quality with a 
minimum of bureaucracy.

Secondary goals include encouraging effective programming techniques and 
providing a focal point for C++ programmers to participate in a wider 
community. Additionally, such a site might foster C++ standards activity 
by helping to establish existing practice."

------

It seems to me that Boost is focused on the original main goal (general 
repository of C++ libraries), as Beman defined his project. Obviously it 
would be nice to take parts of Boost and try to introduce them in the 
standard library, but that was always the secondary or tertiary goal.

Hoping the best for the new initiative, I think saying "Beman project is 
what Boost originally was and now is not" is misleading and Beman 
Project leaders should clarify this when explaining the new initiative. 
Having different goals will make coexistence nicer and I hope many 
programmers can contribute to both projects.

My 2 cents,

Ion