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Boost Asset Stewardship Review - Some questions received
by Glen Fernandes 10 Sep '24

10 Sep '24

The following questions were sent to me about the assets that the C++ Alliance already manages. My replies are included: 1. What are these alternate domains, and how do they differ from boost.io ? These are domains that the C++ Alliance provided for us when we had that issue where boost.org was down for a long period of time. At the time I wasn't sure we would even get boost.org back or what the timeline for recovery would be. I thought that we should provide a backup domain that users can be directed to until the issue is resolved. The C++ Alliance offered to help and registered boostlibraries.org and boostcpp.org that point to our website hosting. boost.io is the domain for people to preview the new website that the C++ Alliance built, developed by Fastly with content contributions from Boost users and developers. 2. Why do we need to pay to support downloads if the hosting is free? The storage costs are minimal but the bandwidth is not. At one point Boost downloads approached 60TB per month and Bintray couldn't afford to support us for free. JFrog generously offered to take over. Recently, our downloads started approaching almost 200TB per month, and now even JFrog couldn't afford to keep hosting us for free. They suggested we use a CDN to reduce traffic costs. I reached out to multiple providers to get a good deal. The best rate was from Fastly but this was also too expensive. The C++ Alliance offered to handle these costs and we subscribed to Fastly. Sam Darwin administers our Fastly account. For the list discussion, you can start at: https://lists.boost.org/Archives/boost/2024/01/255654.php Glen

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Re: [boost] Replacing the ML with a forum
by Andrzej Krzemienski 09 Sep '24

09 Sep '24

śr., 26 kwi 2023 o 16:08 Vinnie Falco via Boost <boost(a)lists.boost.org> napisał(a): > Before we replace the mailing list with a forum (and implement a mail > gateway) can I get feedback on how you use the mailing list from your > email client? > Every message comes as a separate email to me. > > Are you using a threaded e-mail reader? Gmail groups all the emails from the topic as an email thread. > If so, do you care if > discussions are changed to be flat (like Discourse)? What does "flat" mean here? I am not familiar with Discourse. Could we get a sample or example? Regards, &rzej; What is important > to you (besides that you can continue to use your email client)? > > Thanks > > _______________________________________________ > Unsubscribe & other changes: > http://lists.boost.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/boost >

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Boost Asset Stewardship Review from Jakob
by Jakob Lövhall 09 Sep '24

09 Sep '24

I’m not affiliated with either the C++ Alliance or the Boost Foundation. I’m merely a boost user and sends occasional patches as contribution. The regulatory parts of the proposals are naturally US specific, and I want to make it clear that I do not understand the nuances of those parts. This is my short review. Boost Foundation: The bullet points and values stated in the proposal from the Boost Foundation seems strange to me and does not align with what I have been able to discern from public discourse. I haven't seen the transparency that’s being discussed. Engagement to provide said transparency seems lacking from the Boost Foundation. The emphasis on inclusivity over merit feels like a pathway to decline, as it explicitly excludes other groups beyond the intended inclusivity targets. This seems harmful to Boost and its community and should be avoided. The Boost foundation highlights code of conduct (and policing the discussion) as important going forward. I think it can be damaging, and should thus be avoided. Additionally, the Boost Foundation has not adequately addressed the infrastructure needs of Boost. In contrast, the C++ Alliance has stepped in to handle these concerns. C++ Alliance: Vinnie and others from the C++ Alliance have been actively engaging with the community on Slack and the mailing list—my two main points of contact. This provides transparency, builds relationships, and fosters discussions around technical issues, all of which are beneficial. The C++ Alliance has provided much-needed infrastructure assistance, particularly in cases where the Boost Foundation has failed to address long-standing issues (e.g., wowbagger). They support the maintenance (and at times creation) of libraries which I find useful. They promote on twitter, which I like, I've found good tools and libraries from twitter before and I expect others to also do so. having Boost on twitter therefore helps reaching those who might not have thought about boost when thinking about how to solve their current (C++) problems. The C++ Alliance focuses on merit over identity, which I believe is the right approach. Conclusion: I vote to ACCEPT C++ alliance proposal.

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Regression Test Crashing
by Tom Kent 09 Sep '24

09 Sep '24

All- I've been pretty busy lately so just noticed this, but as of August 18 *all* the regression runs have broken during execution. The tail of the results log shows: - cxx11_char16_t : yes [47] - cxx11_char32_t : yes [47] - windows-sdk-supports-bcrypt : no [14] - windows-sdk-supports-bcrypt : no [51] error: Unable to find file or target named error: '/mnt/fs1/teeks99-06/run/boost_root/libs/charconv/build//stage' error: referred to from project at error: '../tools/check_build/test' Similar on windows: - cxx11_char32_t : yes [62] - windows-sdk-supports-bcrypt : yes [21] error: Unable to find file or target named error: '/C:/teeks99-09/run/boost_root/libs/charconv/build//stage' error: referred to from project at error: '../tools/check_build/test' Tom

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Boost Asset Stewardship Review from Frank Wiles
by Glen Fernandes 08 Sep '24

08 Sep '24

Frank contributed the following review below, sent to me directly. > Vote: Transfer Boost Assets to the C++ Alliance > > Association with library: Occasional user. Long time OSS contributor > in other areas. Was paid to help C++ Alliance build the new boost.io > > Rationale: > > While my association with Boost is not large, I have seen first hand > the care the C++ Alliance has taken to both "do the right thing" and > drive for consensus with the Boost community. > > As someone who has been deeply involved in other software nonprofits > (Django Software Foundation directly, Python Software Foundation > tangentially) this proposal is certainly well thought out and > detailed. Most importantly it covers "end state" cases in the event > the Steering Council or C++ Alliance want to change or end the > relationship in the coming years. > > It seems clear to me that the C++ Alliance is driving the majority of > air in terms of breathing new life into Boost and the assets can > safely be within their control, if for no other reason than to reduce > friction in continuing to push things forward. > > -- > Frank Wiles > President/Founder of REVSYS > www.revsys.com > @fwiles Frank, thank you again for the review. Glen

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Boost Asset Stewardship Review from Ali Asadpoor
by Glen Fernandes 07 Sep '24

07 Sep '24

Ali, thank you for the review. Everyone, Ali contributed the following review to glenfe -at- boost.org reposted verbatim here: On Fri, Sep 6, 2024 at 8:49 PM Ali Asadpoor wrote: > > Dear Glen, > > Hear is my review of the proposal doc: > > *** > Currently I don't see a bright future for boost library. Soon STL > will offer networking and later it might offer alternatives to other > awesome libraries in the boost. Seems STL is slowly catching up with > boost and it's killing it. > I was happy to read that The C++ Alliance might provide boost with > a second chance to glow again. Boost needs more human power to > process input from community faster and I think The C++ Alliance can > improve this aspect. > *** > > Best regards > Ali

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Re: [boost] Boost Asset Stewardship Review begins 09/03 (Updated)
by Glen Fernandes 07 Sep '24

07 Sep '24

On Fri, Sep 6, 2024 at 7:44 PM Ion Gaztañaga wrote: > A: Yes, I think C++ Alliance’s proposal should be accepted, with a few > suggestions: Ion, a great many thanks for your review and the sentiments expressed within. Everyone, Ion's review didn't make it to the developer list because of an error in the address. I will ask him to repost it when he can tomorrow morning. Glen

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Asset Stewardship Review
by M P 07 Sep '24

07 Sep '24

Here is my review of the proposed Boost.AssetStewardsipReview ## What is your evaluation of the design? The C++ Alliance has laid out a solid plan for boosting Boost, covering everything from revamping the website to improving integration, documentation, and library support. They’ve clearly identified the main issues and have offered practical, detailed solutions. They’re big on involving the Boost community and stakeholders, encouraging feedback and participation, and valuing everyone’s input. The Alliance is upfront about potential challenges like delays and costs, but they address these issues realistically. They’re not just offering quick fixes but are investing in new tools and dedicated staff for long-term support. On the flip side, the Boost Foundation’s concerns about the Alliance’s transparency and use of paid contributions might come across as overly critical. Sticking to slow decision-making and rigid governance could be seen as a barrier to innovation. Their focus on a purely volunteer-based setup might limit growth, and their critique of gender representation doesn't offer clear solutions. Some of their proposals, like improving mailing list behavior and adopting new tools, are a bit vague and might not be enough to attract fresh contributors or more dynamic approaches. ## What is your evaluation of the implementation? The implementation outlined in the text is well-organized and covers all the essential bases for Boost's long-term success. The C++ Alliance has already proven its value by setting up crucial infrastructure, like continuous integration and IT support, and by contributing to various libraries. The new Boost website is fantastic! Its modern design and user-friendly layout make it easy to navigate and find what you're looking for. With its fresh look and improved functionality, it's sure to catch the eye of new users and make their first experience with Boost a great one. Whether you're a seasoned developer or just getting started, the site’s clean interface and accessible resources are a huge plus. Their plan to revamp Boost’s brand and enhance its visibility is forward-thinking and aligns with what the community needs. The proposal to have the Alliance take on fiscal sponsorship aims to streamline operations and ensure financial stability. One thing to keep in mind is that the Alliance proposal comes with a legal agreement where a Steering Committee, made up entirely of Boost authors, gets to make decisions about the shared resources. If they're not happy with how things are going, they have the power to move those resources elsewhere. This kind of setup isn't mentioned in the Foundation proposal. So, while the idea of the Alliance handling fiscal sponsorship could definitely streamline operations and boost financial stability, how it plays out will depend on how well the Alliance and Boost community work together. ## What is your evaluation of the documentation? The C++ Alliance proposal is easy to follow and straightforward, clearly showcasing its contributions to Boost and laying out plans for future growth. It does a great job of explaining the benefits of the proposed governance changes and shows a real commitment to being open, sustainable, and collaborative. ## How much effort did you put into your evaluation? A glance? A quick reading? In-depth study? I have dedicated considerable time to studying the proposals and related documents, and I have been aware of the ongoing conflict for some time. ## Are you knowledgeable about the problem domain? To some extent. With Boost's popularity declining in recent years, it's at a critical crossroads, and its future success may very well hinge on this decision. ## Do you think the C++ Alliance proposal should be accepted? Yes Miguel Portilla

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Asset Stewardship Review
by Christian Mazakas 06 Sep '24

06 Sep '24

Disclaimer: Alliance employee Hi, I'm a little confused at what the Boost Foundation put forth. The opening review email states: > To be clear, the review is not about deciding governance over Boost > C++ library development. That remains in the hands of the Boost > developer community. But TBF's proposal seems entirely to be governance-related. In terms of asset stewardship, it's kind of a no-brainer to choose the organization that _didn't_ almost lose the boost.org domain name. Plus, the Alliance has Sam Darwin and he's infallible. But to the Boost Foundation's credit, I found myself agreeing with a lot of the points being mentioned. Boost _should_ consider introducing a formal CoC. Boost _should_ officially migrate to CMake and being direct here: this does mean completely abandoning b2. We need to revitalize Boost with the youth culture and to the youth, these things matter quite a bit. - Christian

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Boost Asset Stewardship Review from Nick Thomson
by Glen Fernandes 06 Sep '24

06 Sep '24

Nick sent the following review to me at glenfe -at- boost.org. > From: Nick Thompson > Date: On Wed, Sep 4, 2024 at 18:26 > Subject: Fw: Boost Asset Stewardship Review > To: Glen Fernandes > > Vote: Transfer Boost Assets to the C++ Alliance > > Association with library: Contributor to math, multiprecision, > integer, random, and circular_buffer. Main contributions include > black box optimization, quadrature, and statistics in Boost.Math. > > Rationale: > > My contributions to Boost have mainly been implementation of > numerical algorithms. With each of these additions, years of future > maintenance work is implied. Even with the heroic efforts of John > Maddock, without the financial support of the C++ Alliance, these > libraries would accumulate so many open tickets that our reputation > would be badly damaged. Moreover, the utility of these libraries > would be greatly reduced. For example, there would be no way we could > support scipy's effort to expose Boost.Math to python-probably one of > the most impactful uses of Boost to date. The risk of the project > becoming completely defunk or slowly drifting into irrelevance > without continued financial support is extremely high. So as long as > the C++ Alliance is funding the maintenance, they should have the > most say in the continued operation of the library. > > Nick Thompson Nick, thank you for contributing a review. - Glen

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Boost Asset Stewardship Review begins 09/03
by Glen Fernandes 05 Sep '24

05 Sep '24

Everyone, The formal review for the stewardship of Boost assets begins next week, September 3rd. For reference, the review schedule is: https://www.boost.org/community/review_schedule.html The C++ Alliance submitted the following proposal: https://cppalliance.org/pdf/Fiscal-Sponsorship-Proposal.pdf Also attached to this email as: CplusplusAllianceFiscalSponsorshipProposal.pdf The Boost Foundation has prepared a proposal for the community's consideration that is waiting on review from all board members and will be posted before the end of day tomorrow (08/30, by 5pm EST). A follow up email will be posted when it is available so that it has visibility on the Boost developers list and the Announcement list. The review, like our C++ library formal reviews, is open to everyone to participate. The official review start announcement email next week will detail the process for participation. Thank you, - Glen

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[iostreams] Custom allocator support for compression filters
by Daniel Boehme 04 Sep '24

04 Sep '24

Hello everyone, I'm currently looking into custom allocators with the boost::iostreams::gzip_compressor and now need some help understanding why the code is the way it is. My problem is that I need to control how zlib internally de-/allocates memory. It seems to have support for using custom de-/allocation functions. And iostreams seems to have used it some time ago. However, passing the custom allocator to zlib has been disabled in this commit: https://github.com/boostorg/iostreams/commit/95baf782098f0dee00cc7ca6f62b9b… Does anyone happen to know what has been non-conforming and why it was disabled? I could not find any information about that in the code, on the mailing lists, or anywhere else in the internet. I'm tempted to submit a patch that enables it, but for that I need to understand the reasons behind that deliberate decision. Any hint is welcome. Thank you very much. Daniel B?hme

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[boost.cobalt] Cobalt not building with b2 on Windows
by Andreas Weis 02 Sep '24

02 Sep '24

Hi everyone, It's my understanding that Cobalt is *not* a header-only library, yet it seems that it is not built as part of the b2 build. I'm building Boost with b2 on Windows (MSVC 2022, version 19.41) and it seems that Cobalt is not being built properly. I am using the following command line: b2 --toolset=msvc-14.3 --build-type=complete architecture=x86 address-model=64 --stagedir=stage -j 8 As far as I can tell, this works correctly for all libraries except Cobalt. While b2 does list cobalt as part of the "Component configuration" listing in the output: - atomic : building - charconv : building - chrono : building - cobalt : building [...] But I get neither binaries nor a folder cmake/boost_cobalt* with this. It also seems that the Cobalt binaries are not part of the distribution at https://sourceforge.net/projects/boost/files/boost-binaries/. Am I doing something wrong? Is Cobalt supposed to be part of the b2 build or is there another way to consume the non-header-only parts of the library? Best regards, Andreas

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Boost.Compute broken in 1.86.0 because of UUID changes, 1.86.1?
by Peter Dimov 30 Aug '24

30 Aug '24

Because Boost.Compute (boost/compute/detail/sha1.hpp) uses an implementation detail of Boost.UUID (boost/uuid/detail/sha1.hpp), and because I changed the implementation to fix an endianness issue, <boost/compute.hpp> now causes a compile error in 1.86.0, as reported in https://github.com/boostorg/uuid/issues/166 https://github.com/boostorg/compute/pull/887 https://github.com/boostorg/compute/pull/888 https://github.com/boostorg/compute/issues/889 Users are demanding we issue a point release to fix this. It will have to include https://github.com/boostorg/compute/pull/887 and https://github.com/boostorg/compute/pull/893 What do release managers think?

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Inter pod communication using shared memory
by Murali Bathina 30 Aug '24

30 Aug '24

Hi all, Is Boost supports inter pod communication using shared memory or other ways like boost interprocess communication. Looking inputs on this. Regards, Murali ________________________________ This e-mail message may contain confidential or proprietary information of Mavenir Systems, Inc. or its affiliates and is intended solely for the use of the intended recipient(s). If you are not the intended recipient of this message, you are hereby notified that any review, use or distribution of this information is absolutely prohibited and we request that you delete all copies in your control and contact us by e-mailing to security(a)mavenir.com. This message contains the views of its author and may not necessarily reflect the views of Mavenir Systems, Inc. or its affiliates, who employ systems to monitor email messages, but make no representation that such messages are authorized, secure, uncompromised, or free from computer viruses, malware, or other defects. Thank You

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glibc version mismatches in CI
by Jeff Trull 28 Aug '24

28 Aug '24

Hi folks, While reviewing the Modular Boost changes for Wave I noticed that our CI is now failing - and we're not alone in this. It looks like the version of glibc in some of the old Ubuntu containers, which are required to compile against old versions of gcc, is incompatible with the Node executable that runs actions/checkout@v2 (and 3 and 4). You might see errors like this: /__e/node20/bin/node: /lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libc.so.6: version `GLIBC_2.28' not found (required by /__e/node20/bin/node) The Github blog discusses the change here <https://github.blog/changelog/2024-03-07-github-actions-all-actions-will-ru…> At least one brave pioneer, Andrey Semashev, has made updates to make CI green again in a handful of libraries, but I haven't seen it discussed on the list. Is there a fix other than "rewrite using manual checkout"? I managed to implement the workaround described in the blog post by adding these lines close to the top of ci.yml: env: ACTIONS_ALLOW_USE_UNSECURE_NODE_VERSION: true Though it seems unwise to rely on in the long run. Best, Jeff

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Governance review
by David Sankel 26 Aug '24

26 Aug '24

The Boost Foundation approved the following motion relating to using the library review process for the governance/fiscal entity decision with 8 in favor and 0 against. MOTION: Support handling the governance question with the following process recommendations: - There should be a period (maybe a month) with a request for proposals. - These proposals should answer questions such as “What problems is this organizational change attempting to solve? How is this in line with Boost’s mission and values? What will the impact be for current volunteers? How does this proposal meet the changing needs of the Boost and wider C++ communities? What risks are there with this approach and how can they be mitigated? How will the greater C++ community react to this development?” - Proposal writers are encouraged to publish their proposals early and use feedback to refine them until the official review period is underway. - The proposals should be specific about how expenses will be financed, how decisions are made, and how decision makers will be put in place. - For fiscal entities, structure and bylaws should be stated. - All proposals should be reviewed during the same period. - The greater C++ community should be aware and invited to participate in the discussion. - The review period should be 20 days. - We want this to be a civil discussion and encourage everyone to make this a reality. Presume that others in the discussion are acting in good faith. -- David

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Request for information regarding the Boost Foundation
by Robert Ramey 26 Aug '24

26 Aug '24

checking the Boost Foundation website I find some information such as https://sites.google.com/boost.org/boost-foundation/contact which lists the board of directors. Is there more complete information such as: a) link to legal documents such as articles of incorporation, 501(c)3 non-profit paperwork etc? b) Bylaws which among other things would describe the procedure for selection of members of the board, listing what the powers of the board are, etc. c) financial statements for recent years d) List of financial oblications that the foundation has committed to e) any other useful stuff Robert Ramey

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Getting Started with Modular Boost Library Maintenance
by Alain O' Miniussi 26 Aug '24

26 Aug '24

Hi At the bottom of "https://github.com/boostorg/wiki/wiki/Getting-Started%3A-Overview" (why the 2 "wiki"?) there is a "Getting Started with Modular Boost Library Maintenance" link pointing to missing https://svn.boost.org/trac/boost/wiki/StartModMaint. Where is the page gone ? Thanks ---- Alain Miniussi DSI, Pôles Calcul et Genie Log. Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur Tél. : +33609650665

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Stewardship Review Request
by Vinnie Falco 21 Aug '24

21 Aug '24

Recently the Boost Foundation offered the community two choices of organizations for stewardship of Boost's shared resources: itself, and The C++ Alliance. The project needs a decision, in order that its future may be determined. The Formal Review Process is typically called upon to answer the question of whether a library should be accepted into the collection. I have proposed that we use the same process to determine the question of stewardship. It is not perfect, yet it is both familiar and enduring. Although there are two designated review wizards, one is unavailable and the other is traveling. And review wizards have never been called upon to oversee non-library reviews. Therefore, I would like to add a formal review to the calendar for the following days, inclusive: Monday August 19, to Wednesday, August 28 Here are some review managers who I believe are well-suited for the task: Ion Gatzanaga John Maddock Glen Fernandes Peter Dimov If Glen or Peter accept, it would be appropriate for them to first resign from the Boost Foundation board. Thanks

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Modular Boost building next steps.
by René Ferdinand Rivera Morell 19 Aug '24

19 Aug '24

After some weeks of testing and addressing review comments from authors I have now marked PRs for supporting modular building and use of 156 Boost libraries. There are 2 libraries (multiprecision and utility) that are not ready yet, as they depend on other PRs. After the testing and review I've also concluded that authors (and owners) can merge all ready PRs without waiting for the tool specific PRs. It turned out there were no dependency issues between them. Hence the process is now: * The 1.86 release happened!! * Authors further review and merge the ready PRs. * I fix any fallout from that. * I create subsequent PRs for the global B2 Boost build infrastructure to remove the old non-modular dead code. * I fix any fallout from that. * The 1.87 release happens. Thank you everyone for the help so far. In particular Peter Dimov and Andrey Semashev for the many early comments across various PRs that helped me work out the kinks of the draft PRs. -- -- René Ferdinand Rivera Morell -- Don't Assume Anything -- No Supone Nada -- Robot Dreams - http://robot-dreams.net

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Another question about Boost Documentation
by Robert Ramey 19 Aug '24

19 Aug '24

There are many places where the boostbook xml/xsl files make reference to external files that we have no control of. Here is an example from modular-boost/tools/boostbook/xsl/docbook.xsl <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>  <xsl:stylesheet xmlns:xsl="http://www.w3.org/1999/XSL/Transform" xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" version="1.0"> <xsl:import href="http://docbook.sourceforge.net/release/xsl/current/common/common.xsl"/> <xsl:include href="reference.xsl"/> ... This means that if something changes in docbook.sourceforge.net/release/xsl/current/common/common.xsl We'll have problems when we try to build documentation. This recently happened to me and it was a bitch to find. I spent some time looking around for the right way to fix this and came upon the concept of XML catalogs as explained here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XML_catalog#Example_Catalog.xml Seems to me that the maintainer of boostbook should verify that my understanding is correct and update boostbook files accordingly. Actually, I'd be grateful to any insight on this subject that anyone might provide. Robert Ramey

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Re: [boost] [compute] Maintenance status
by René Eng 18 Aug '24

18 Aug '24

Hi all I am no expert in OpenCL nor GPGPU, but very interested in this topic and would love to learn more about it. I volunteer to take care of the maintenance of this library. Since I have no experience with the Boost way of handling PRs etc., I guess would need some support from an experienced library maintainer in the beginning. Until now I was a silent reader here, so let me shortly introduce myself: My name is René Eng, 57 years old, living in Switzerland. I am working as a C++ developer for more than 20 years, in the high performance/low latency area. I have experience with some other Boost sub-libraries, in the past also used b2 to build Boost when there were no packages available yet. If there is no-one else with more experience in this topic, who wants to take over this library, I would. This week I am on holiday, so I would actually start to take a closer look into it next week. Best regards René Von meinem iPhone gesendet > Am 21.07.2024 um 17:04 schrieb Joaquin M López Muñoz via Boost <boost(a)lists.boost.org>: > It was brought to my attention that Boost.Compute seems to be all but abandoned: > no updates in three years, more than 100 issues filed, 27 unattended PRs. This is a > shame given that the library looks pretty popular based on GH stars and references > on Internet. Are there volunteers to take on maintenance of the library? > > Best, > > Joaquin M Lopez Munoz > > > _______________________________________________ > Unsubscribe & other changes: http://lists.boost.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/boost

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Option 1: Alliance stewardship of Boost
by Vinnie Falco 17 Aug '24

17 Aug '24

I believe this is important enough that it needs a thread of discussion split from the original at https://lists.boost.org/Archives/boost/2024/08/257347.php Some important details seem to have been lost in the conversation. I will summarize the Alliance position in a nutshell: The Alliance will become Boost's steward. Then, we shall assist the Boost Software Commons (a new non-profit created on March 1, 2024) to attain financial independence. Finally we will transfer the shared assets to this new non-profit. Also, I love Boost and I would like the opportunity to help it become a many-generational institution singularly driven to support library development. The message below is reposted in its entirety and without modification. --- I want to start by expressing my gratitude to Kristen, who kept an open and friendly line of communication with me for the last several months. It is unpaid volunteer work, difficult at times, and I appreciate her effort. As a passionate contributor to Boost, I am excited to see renewed growth and positive change in the project. The Boost Foundation has generously offered that the community may determine if the Alliance should be the steward of Boost’s shared resources. The term steward instead of owner is deliberate, as the former reflects the behavior which respects the Boost tradition of consensus-driven decisions. In this communiqué I would like to explore what option 1 looks like from an operational perspective (wearing my Alliance president hat) and then outline my opinion as the author of four Boost libraries. The Alliance is already the largest financial sponsor of the Boost project. Going with the first option means that our relationship to Boost would become formal. What would happen is this: 1. The Alliance becomes the registrant of the boost.org domain. This may take time, but effectively immediately after going with option 1, the Alliance shall fulfill our Domain Name Purchase Agreement under substantially similar terms including the launch of the Beman Scholarship Fund (if there is agreement). The Alliance shall reimburse the Foundation for any and all reasonable legal expenses incurred for both changes of domain ownership, including the estate fees. 2. The Alliance assumes all costs and responsibility to ensure that the boost.org domain registration does not expire, the SSL certificates are renewed and up to date, and that quarterly transparency reports are published to the mailing list apprising the community on the status of its registration. 3. The Alliance assumes all costs and responsibility for maintaining Boost’s cloud services (“Services”). This includes but is not limited to the wowbagger server, the new website, the new mailing list service, the existing mailgun account, and other services which may be required to support Boost’s infrastructure. The mailing list will be upgraded but continue to function as it is currently. Quarterly transparency reports will be published to the mailing list detailing the ongoing expenses and condition of these resources. 4. While the Alliance is the steward of the domain and cloud services, the content of the website and related web applications, such as the release building process, is controlled by the Boost GitHub Organization. Including but not limited to the repositories here: https://github.com/boostorg/website https://github.com/boostorg/website-v2 https://github.com/boostorg/website-v2-docs Changes made to these repositories will go through the existing pull request and review process, which requires community consensus. The Owners, defined as the set of users in the Boost GitHub Organization which have the Owner role, maintain the responsibility for determining consensus. 5. When the Boost community cannot achieve consensus, the responsibility for making a directional decision shall pass to the Boost Software Commons (“Commons”), a 501(c)(3) non-profit registered in Delaware on March 1, 2024, which is not controlled by the Alliance and whose board currently consists of Boost authors. The Commons is now in hibernation until it is needed. 6. The Alliance shall endeavor to help the Commons become capable of independently financing Boost’s infrastructure. The Services cost about $13,000 a year to run, excluding wowbagger and the downloads hosting costs. Our plans include: * Establishing a Boost Patreon * Sales of Boost-branded products at conferences and by mail * Soliciting donations from corporate and private sponsors * Optimizing the Services to reduce cost In all cases, proceeds from fundraising shall go directly to the Commons. 7. When fundraising levels reach the threshold necessary to finance the Services, or earlier upon request by the Commons, the Alliance shall transfer ownership of the boost.org domain to them. At the Commons’ option, the Alliance may continue administering the Services. Why The C++ Alliance? I believe that the Boost Foundation’s governance rules and board composition are simply not structured to put the best interests of Boost first, as can be seen from their own published minutes. The Boost project has been in decline for several years and the Alliance would like the opportunity to do something about it, in a way that is consistent with the project’s values. As our plans require significant financial investments (which we are happy to make), changes are needed. Option 1, Alliance stewardship of shared assets, provides Boost with the opportunity to refresh the foundations of the organization with new ideas, talent, and resources. It offers rescue from stagnation and the rare opportunity to restructure itself to better reflect the project’s changing needs from its inception 26 years ago. While I am excited at the possibility of realizing a dream to increase Boost participation, I am also mindful of the enormous responsibility this comes with. Fortunately I will not have to bear this alone, as there are many new and existing volunteers who are ready to support Boost going forward and ensure its longevity. Thank you for your support!

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[release] Boost.1.86.0
by Marshall Clow 16 Aug '24

16 Aug '24

Release 1.86.0 of the Boost C++ Libraries is now available. These open-source libraries work well with the C++ Standard Library, and are usable across a broad spectrum of applications. The Boost license encourages both commercial and non-commercial use. The release contains numerous enhancements and bug fixes for existing libraries. For details, including download links, see <http://www.boost.org/users/news/version_1.86.0> You can also download directly from: <https://archives.boost.io/release/1.86.0/source/> To install this release on your system, see <http://www.boost.org/doc/libs/release/more/getting_started/index.html> Thanks to everyone who participated in this release. -- The Boost Release Team Marshall Clow, Glen Fernandes, Ion Ion Gaztañaga

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