Re: Boost Foundation, Boost, and the Beman Project

From: David Sankel (camior_at_[hidden])
Date: 2024-07-11 21:11:31

On Thu, Jul 11, 2024 at 4:30 PM René Ferdinand Rivera Morell via Boost <
boost_at_[hidden]> wrote:

> On Thu, Jul 11, 2024 at 3:17 PM Ion Gaztañaga via Boost
> <boost_at_[hidden]> wrote:
> >
> > So definitely Boost's original goal was not to create libraries for the
> > standard, but to be a repository of top-quality C++ libraries.
>
> Indeed. But for me it was good to hear direct confirmation from
> someone who was there at the start.
>

I reached out to Dave Abrahams and this was his response:

The “additional goal” certainly loomed large in my mind.  The way I
understood it, the whole discussion started because Beman was asking where
we would get libraries with existing practice for the next standard.  So,
two possibilities:

1. My impression of the original intent is incorrect
2. It was decided that the best way to fulfill that goal was to incubate a
general library collection

It's possible it was some combination.  Feel free to share this.

Obviously, I wasn't there for the original discussion; you'd have to check
with Robert Klarer for a first-hand account.