śr., 18 wrz 2024 o 15:06 Phil Endecott via Boost <boost@lists.boost.org> napisał(a):

I've been a Boost user and subscriber to this mailing list for most of this century, but I'm not a library author.

It's tempting to write a long navel-gazing essay about the history of Boost and what it needs to do to remain vital, and then to pretend to forensically study the competing proposals to determine which will give the best result in the longer term. But in this post I'll try to be more honest: isn't this review more like a referendum on whose side we favour in the Vinnie Falco vs. David Sankel clash of personalities? Somehow we've reached a point where "this town ain't big enough for the two of them" and we're being asked to choose who to exile.

What do I think about the Boost Foundation? I have always been mystified by why the Foundation, and the Steering Committee before them, have interacted so little with the list. The most extraordinary example of this was that the very establishment of the Foundation was not announced to the developers! Periodic, brief updates on Foundation activities to the mailing list would not have taken much effort could even have resulted in more offers of help. The foundation's present proposal starts by talking about "Transparency"; perhaps they would be more transparent in the future, but that would be a departure from how they have worked in the past.

Regarding Vinnie and his C++ Alliance, I've not had a very positive view of them since he posted this back in 2023:

"Something which should not surprise anyone is that I despise paying taxes."

This statement is repeated in his current proposal.

Personally, I'm proud of the tax that my business and I pay as it funds education, health, pensions and other public services that make my community a better place in which to live. In the world I inhabit, this is a mainstream view.

It's one thing to despise paying taxes, but I think it's quite another to tell everyone that and assume that they share the same view. When I read that the boost.io domain for the "temporary" website had cost $135,000, my reaction was that you could feed a lot of hungry children with that sort of money.

My conclusion is, "a plague on both your houses".

I fear that Boost is doomed. This review will result in Vinnie's hostile takeover succeeding, but eventually he'll lose interest - maybe when the "young developers" that he hopes to attract don't materialise, or maybe after another falling-out with someone else. Then the project will sink.

I think this is the right time for me to unsubscribe from this list; being here doesn't help me, and my contributions don't seem to help anyone else. I extend my best wishes and thanks to all those whose libraries I have used over the years.

Phil, You have contributed to every Boost Review recently. This is the effect on the Boost libraries that one can be proud of. I am not in a position to say this, but thank you for your contribution. I am sorry that you feel this way. Regards, &rzej;