Re: [Boost-users] Relationships between libraries and Boost

From: David Abrahams (dave_at_[hidden])
Date: 2006-02-16 07:35:04

Scott Meyers <usenet_at_[hidden]> writes:

> Jeff Garland wrote:
>> On Sun, 12 Feb 2006 20:37:32 -0800, Scott Meyers wrote
>>>                                          this suggests that just 
>>>because a library has been accepted by Boost doesn't mean it will 
>>>show up in the list at http://boost.org/libs/libraries.htm.  Can 
>>>somebody please explain to me what are probably the basics of what 
>>>it means to be "in" Boost >
>> 
>> It just means that the TR1 library isn't in the current boost release (1.33.1)
>> that you can download.  It's been accepted and is in the mainline repository
>> -- hence it is being regression tested and prepared for the next release.
>
> Now that I think about it some more, I'm confused.  My understanding is that a 
> library can be in one of the following states:
> - In the current distribution.
> - Accepted but not yet in the current distribution (includes provisionally 
> accepted).
> - In the process of being reviewed.

There's also:
- in the review queue
- in a stable state but with no review requested (yet)
- in development

Only the first one of those last three has any formal status.

> But I also hear a lot about libraries being in the Boost sandbox, and I don't 
> really know what that means.  Is this explained somewhere?  

It's just a repository for code in one of the last 2 states.

> If not, can somebody give me an overview of the different ways in
> which a library can be associated with Boost?

Only an accepted library is a Boost library, but people develop code
all the time with the intention of making a Boost library.

> In the past, my relationship with Boost was simple: from time to
> time, I downloaded the current release and went my merry way.  Now I
> understand that the current release doesn't cover everything in
> Boost, and I'd like to better understand the other relationships
> that a library can have with Boost.

I'll be covering all this in my SD West talk.  Unfortunately, as you
know, our talks overlap ;-)

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