diff --git a/discussion_policy.htm b/discussion_policy.htm index ef6a59c..c171f0b 100644 --- a/discussion_policy.htm +++ b/discussion_policy.htm @@ -1,129 +1,158 @@ - + - - - -Boost Discussion Policy + + + + + + Boost Discussion Policy + + + -
+
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Boost Discussion Policy

-

Email discussion is the tie that binds boost members together into a community. -If the discussion is stimulating and effective, the community thrives. If -the discussion degenerates into name calling and ill will, the community withers -and dies.

+ Libraries -

Contents

-
-
Acceptable Topics
-
Unacceptable Topics
-
Effective Posting
-
Prohibited Behavior
-
Culture
-
Library Names
-
+ People -

Acceptable topics

- -

Other topics related to boost development may be acceptable, at the discretion of moderators. If unsure, go ahead and post. The moderators -will let you know.

-

Unacceptable Topics

- -

Well-Crafted Posting is Worth the Effort

+

Effective Posting

-

Don't forget, you're a single writer but there are many readers, -and you want them to stay interested in what you're saying. Saving -your readers a little time and effort is usually worth the extra time -you spend when writing a message. Also, boost discussions are saved -for posterity, as rationales and history of the work we do. A post's -usefulness in the future is determined by its readability. +

Most Boost mailing lists host a great deal of traffic, so your post is + usually competing for attention with many other communications. This + section describes how to make sure it has the desired impact.

-

Put the Library Name in the Subject Line

+

Well-Crafted Posting is Worth the Effort

-

When your post is related to a particular Boost library, it's -helpful to put the library name in square brackets at the beginning of -the subject line, e.g. +

Don't forget, you're a single writer but there are many readers, and you + want them to stay interested in what you're saying. Saving your readers a + little time and effort is usually worth the extra time you spend when + writing a message. Also, boost discussions are saved for posterity, as + rationales and history of the work we do. A post's usefulness in the future + is determined by its readability.

-
- Subject: [Regex] Why doesn't this pattern match? -
+

Put the Library Name in the Subject Line

-The Boost developers' list is a high-volume mailing list, and most -maintainers don't have time to read every message. A tag on the -subject line will help ensure the right people see your post. +

When your post is related to a particular Boost library, it's helpful to + put the library name in square brackets at the beginning of the subject + line, e.g.

-

+

+ Subject: [Regex] Why doesn't this pattern match? +
The Boost developers' list is a high-volume mailing list, and + most maintainers don't have time to read every message. A tag on the + subject line will help ensure the right people see your post. -

Don't Use Tabs

+

-If you use tabs to indent your source code, convert them to spaces -before inserting the code in a posting. Something in the processing -chain usually strips all the indentation and leaves a mess behind. +

Don't Use Tabs

If you use tabs to indent your source code, convert + them to spaces before inserting the code in a posting. Something in the + processing chain usually strips all the indentation and leaves a mess + behind. -

+

-

Limit Line Length

+

Limit Line Length

If you put source code in your postings and your + mailer wraps long lines automatically, either keep the code narrow or + insert the code as an (inline, if possible) attachment. That will help + ensure others can read what you've posted. -If you put source code in your postings and your mailer wraps long -lines automatically, either keep the code narrow or insert the code as -an (inline, if possible) attachment. That will help ensure others can -read what you've posted. +

-

+

Don't Overquote

Please prune extraneous quoted text from + replies so that only the relevant parts are included. Some people have to + pay for, or wait for, each byte that they download from the list. More + importantly, it will save time and make your post more valuable when + readers do not have to find out which exact part of a previous message you + are responding to. -

Don't Overquote

-Please prune extraneous quoted text from replies so that -only the relevant parts are included. Some people have to pay for, or -wait for, each byte that they download from the list. More -importantly, it will save time and make your post more valuable when -readers do not have to find out which exact part of a previous message -you are responding to. +

Use a Readable Quotation Style

-

Use a Readable Quotation Style

-

A common and very useful approach is to cite the small fractions of -the message you are actually responding to and to put your response -directly beneath each citation, with a blank line separating them for -readability: +

A common and very useful approach is to cite the small fractions of the + message you are actually responding to and to put your response directly + beneath each citation, with a blank line separating them for + readability:

-
-
+  

+    
 
 Person-you're-replying-to wrote:
 
@@ -140,183 +169,199 @@ Your response to the second part of the message goes here.
 ...
 
 

-

+
For more information about effective use of quotation in + posts, see this + helpful guide. -For more information about effective use of quotation in posts, see this helpful -guide. +

Keep the Formatting of Quotations Consistent

-

Keep the Formatting of Quotations Consistent

-

-Some email and news clients use poor word wrapping algorithms that -leave successive lines from the same quotation with differing numbers -of leading ">" characters. Microsoft -Outlook and Outlook Express, and some web clients, are -especially bad about this. If your client offends in this way, please -take the effort to clean up the mess it makes in quoted text. -Remember, even if you didn't write the original text, it's your -posting; whether you get your point across depends on its readability. -

-The Microsoft clients also create an unusually verbose header at the -beginning of the original message text and leave the cursor at the -beginning of the message, which encourages users to write their -replies before all of the quoted text rather than putting the reply in -context. Outlook Express users can fix all of these problems -automatically by installing -OE -QuoteFix. Unfortunately there's no similar utility for Outlook -Users; they will have to clean up their posts manually. +

Some email and news clients use poor word wrapping algorithms that leave + successive lines from the same quotation with differing numbers of leading + ">" characters. Microsoft Outlook and Outlook + Express, and some web clients, are especially bad about this. If your + client offends in this way, please take the effort to clean up the mess it + makes in quoted text. Remember, even if you didn't write the original text, + it's your posting; whether you get your point across depends on its + readability.

-

Summarizing and Referring to Earlier Messages

+

The Microsoft clients also create an unusually verbose header at the + beginning of the original message text and leave the cursor at the + beginning of the message, which encourages users to write their replies + before all of the quoted text rather than putting the reply in context. + Fortunately, Dominic Jain has written a utility that fixes all of these + problems automatically: Outlook + Quotefix for Outlook Users and OE QuoteFix for + users of Outlook Express.

-

A summary of the foregoing thread is only needed after a long -discussion, especially when the topic is drifting or a result has been -achieved in a discussion. The mail system will do the tracking that -is needed to enable mail readers to display message threads (and every -decent mail reader supports that). +

Summarizing and Referring to Earlier Messages

-

If you ever have to refer to single message earlier in a thread or -in a different thread then you can use a URL to the message archives. To help to -keep those URLs short, you can use tinyurl.com. Citing the relevant -portion of a message you link to is often helpful (if the citation is -small). +

A summary of the foregoing thread is only needed after a long + discussion, especially when the topic is drifting or a result has been + achieved in a discussion. The mail system will do the tracking that is + needed to enable mail readers to display message threads (and every decent + mail reader supports that).

-

Maintain the Integrity of Discussion Threads

+

If you ever have to refer to single message earlier in a thread or in a + different thread then you can use a URL to the message archives. To help to keep those + URLs short, you can use tinyurl.com. + Citing the relevant portion of a message you link to is often helpful (if + the citation is small).

-

When starting a new topic, always send a fresh message, -rather than beginning a reply to some other message and replacing the -subject and body. Many mailers are able to detect the thread you -started with and will show the new message as part of the original -thread, which probably isn't what you intended. Follow this guideline -for your own sake as well as for others'. Often, people scanning for -relevant messages will decide they're done with a topic and hide or -kill the entire thread: your message will be missed, and you won't get -the response you're looking for. +

Maintain the Integrity of Discussion Threads

-

By the same token, When replying to an existing message, use -your mailer's "Reply" function, so that the reply shows -up as part of the same discussion thread. +

When starting a new topic, always send a fresh message, rather + than beginning a reply to some other message and replacing the subject and + body. Many mailers are able to detect the thread you started with and will + show the new message as part of the original thread, which probably isn't + what you intended. Follow this guideline for your own sake as well as for + others'. Often, people scanning for relevant messages will decide they're + done with a topic and hide or kill the entire thread: your message will be + missed, and you won't get the response you're looking for.

-

Do not reply to digests if you are a digest delivery -subscriber. Your reply will not be properly threaded and will -probably have the wrong subject line. Instead, you can reply through -the GMane -web interface. +

By the same token, When replying to an existing message, use your + mailer's "Reply" function, so that the reply shows up as part of the + same discussion thread.

+

Do not reply to digests if you are a digest delivery subscriber. + Your reply will not be properly threaded and will probably have the wrong + subject line. Instead, you can reply through the GMane web + interface.

-

Keep The Size of Your Posting Manageable

+

Keep The Size of Your Posting Manageable

-

The mailing list software automatically limits message and -attachment size to a reasonable amount, typically 75K, which is -adjusted from time-to-time by the moderators. This limit is a -courtesy to those who rely on dial-up Internet access. -

+

The mailing list software automatically limits message and attachment + size to a reasonable amount, typically 75K, which is adjusted from + time-to-time by the moderators. This limit is a courtesy to those who rely + on dial-up Internet access.

-

Prohibited Behavior

-

Prohibited behavior will not be tolerated. The moderators will ban -postings by abusers.

-

Flame wars

-

Personal insults, argument for the sake of argument, and all the other -behaviors which fall into the "flame war" category are -prohibited. Discussions should focus on technical arguments, not the -personality traits or motives of participants.

-

Third-party attacks

-

Attacks on third parties such as software vendors, hardware vendors, or any -other organizations, are prohibited. Boost exists to unite and serve the -entire C++ community, not to disparage the work of others.

-

Does this mean that we ban the occasional complaint or wry remark about a -troublesome compiler? No, but be wary of overdoing it.

-

Off-topic posts

-

Discussions which stray from the acceptable topics are strongly discouraged. -While off-topic posts are often well meaning and not as individually corrosive -as other abuses, cumulatively the distraction damages the effectiveness of -discussion.

-

Culture

-

In addition to technical skills, Boost members value collaboration, -acknowledgement of the help of others, and a certain level of politeness. Boost -membership is very international, and ranges widely in age and other -characteristics. Think of discussion as occurring among colleagues in a widely read forum, rather -than among a few close friends.

+

Prohibited Behavior

-

Always remember that the cumulative effort spent by people reading -your contribution scales with the (already large) number of boost -members. Thus, do invest time and effort to make your message as -readable as possible. Adhere to English syntax and grammar rules such -as proper capitalization. Avoid copious informalism, colloquial -language, or abbreviations, they may not be understood by all readers. -Re-read your message before submitting it.

+

Prohibited behavior will not be tolerated. The moderators will ban + postings by abusers.

-

Guidelines for Effective Discussions

-

Apply social engineering to prevent heated technical discussion from -degenerating into a shouting match, and to actively encourage the cooperation -upon which Boost depends.

- -

Avoid Parkinson's Bicycle Shed. Parkinson described a committee formed -to oversee design of an early nuclear power plant. There were three agenda -items - when to have tea, where to put the bicycle shed, and how to -ensure nuclear safety. Tea was disposed of quickly as trivial.   -Nuclear safety was discussed for only -an hour - it was so complex, scary, and technical that even -among experts few felt comfortable with the issues. Endless days were then -spent discussing where to put the bicycle shed (the parking lot would -be a modern equivalent) because everyone -understood the issues and felt comfortable discussing them. 

+

Flame wars

-

Library Names

+

Personal insults, argument for the sake of argument, and all the other + behaviors which fall into the "flame war" category are prohibited. + Discussions should focus on technical arguments, not the personality traits + or motives of participants.

-

In order to ensure a uniform presentation in books and articles, we -have adopted a convention for referring to Boost libraries. Library -names can either be written in a compact form with a dot, as -"Boost.Name", or in a long form as "the -Boost Name library." For example: -

-Boost.Python serves a very different purpose from the Boost Graph library. -
-Note that the word "library" is not part of the name, and as such isn't capitalized. +

Third-party attacks

-

Please take care to avoid confusion in discussions between -libraries that have been accepted into Boost and those that have not. -Acceptance as a Boost library indicates that the code and design have -passed through our peer-review process; failing to make the -distinction devalues the hard work of library authors who've gone -through that process. Here are some suggested ways to describe -potential Boost libraries: -

-

Note that this policy only applies to discussions, not to the -documentation, directory structure, or even identifiers in the -code of potential Boost libraries. +

Attacks on third parties such as software vendors, hardware vendors, or + any other organizations, are prohibited. Boost exists to unite and serve + the entire C++ community, not to disparage the work of others.

-
-

Revised 28 May, 2005 -

-

© Beman Dawes, Rob Stewart, and David Abrahams 2000-2005

-

Distributed under the Boost Software License, Version 1.0. -(See accompanying file LICENSE_1_0.txt or -copy at www.boost.org/LICENSE_1_0.txt) -

+

Does this mean that we ban the occasional complaint or wry remark about + a troublesome compiler? No, but be wary of overdoing it.

+

Off-topic posts

+ +

Discussions which stray from the acceptable topics are strongly + discouraged. While off-topic posts are often well meaning and not as + individually corrosive as other abuses, cumulatively the distraction + damages the effectiveness of discussion.

+ +

Culture

+ +

In addition to technical skills, Boost members value collaboration, + acknowledgement of the help of others, and a certain level of politeness. + Boost membership is very international, and ranges widely in age and other + characteristics. Think of discussion as occurring among colleagues in a + widely read forum, rather than among a few close friends.

+ +

Always remember that the cumulative effort spent by people reading your + contribution scales with the (already large) number of boost members. Thus, + do invest time and effort to make your message as readable as possible. + Adhere to English syntax and grammar rules such as proper capitalization. + Avoid copious informalism, colloquial language, or abbreviations, they may + not be understood by all readers. Re-read your message before submitting + it.

+ +

Guidelines for Effective Discussions

+ +

Apply social engineering to prevent heated technical discussion from + degenerating into a shouting match, and to actively encourage the + cooperation upon which Boost depends.

+ + + +

Avoid Parkinson's Bicycle Shed. Parkinson described a committee formed + to oversee design of an early nuclear power plant. There were three agenda + items - when to have tea, where to put the bicycle shed, and how to ensure + nuclear safety. Tea was disposed of quickly as trivial.   Nuclear + safety was discussed for only an hour - it was so complex, scary, and + technical that even among experts few felt comfortable with the issues. + Endless days were then spent discussing where to put the bicycle shed (the + parking lot would be a modern equivalent) because everyone understood the + issues and felt comfortable discussing them. 

+ +

Library Names

+ +

In order to ensure a uniform presentation in books and articles, we have + adopted a convention for referring to Boost libraries. Library names can + either be written in a compact form with a dot, as "Boost.Name", or + in a long form as "the Boost Name library." For example:

+ +
+ Boost.Python serves a very different purpose from the Boost + Graph library. +
Note that the word "library" is not part of the name, and as + such isn't capitalized. + +

Please take care to avoid confusion in discussions between libraries + that have been accepted into Boost and those that have not. Acceptance as a + Boost library indicates that the code and design have passed through our + peer-review process; failing to make the distinction devalues the hard work + of library authors who've gone through that process. Here are some + suggested ways to describe potential Boost libraries:

+ + + +

Note that this policy only applies to discussions, not to the + documentation, directory structure, or even identifiers in the code of + potential Boost libraries.

+
+ +

Revised + 28 + May, 2005

+ +

© Beman Dawes, Rob Stewart, and David Abrahams 2000-2005

+ +

Distributed under the Boost Software License, Version 1.0. (See + accompanying file LICENSE_1_0.txt or copy + at www.boost.org/LICENSE_1_0.txt)

-