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Managing Reviews

Before a library can be scheduled for formal review, an active Boost member (not connected with the library submission) must volunteer to be the Review Manager for the library. Members may contact a library author on- or off-list to express interest in managing the review. The library author has to accept a person as a review manager.

Before submitting a library, it will help to understand the role of the review manager.

The Role of Review Manager

The review manager works through the following process:

  1. Checks the submission to make sure it really is complete enough to warrant formal review. For full requirements, refer to the Library Requirements. If necessary, work with the submitter to verify the code compiles and runs correctly on several compilers and platforms.

  2. Finalizes the schedule with the Review Wizards and the submitter.

  3. Posts a notice of the review schedule on both the Boost developers' mailing list and the Boost-announce mailing list.

    1. The notice should include a brief description of the library and what it does, to let readers know if the library is one they are interested in reviewing.

    2. If the library is known to fail with certain compilers, mention them in the review notice so reviewers with those compilers won’t waste time diagnosing known problems.

    3. It is advised to send the notice to each mailing list in a separate e-mail, otherwise online e-mail to news gateways could get confused.

  4. Inspects the Boost library catalogue for libraries which may interact with the new submission. These potential interactions should be pointed out in the review announcement, and the authors of these libraries should be privately notified and urged to participate in the review.

  5. Urges people to do reviews if they aren’t forthcoming.

  6. Follows review discussions regarding the library, moderating or answering questions as needed.

  7. Asks the Review Wizards for permission to extend the review schedule if it appears that too few reviews will be submitted during the review period.

  8. Decides if there is consensus to accept the library and if there are any conditions attached. Consensus is not the same as a vote. The review manager has discretion to weigh opinions based on authority or thoughtfulness.

  9. Posts a notice of the review results on the Boost users mailing list as well as the Boost developers' mailing list and Boost-announce mailing list. A rationale is also helpful, but its extent is up to the review manager. If there are suggestions, or conditions that must be met before final inclusion, they should be stated. Concerns about the timeliness or quality of the review report should be brought to the Review Wizards off-list.

Becoming a Review Manager

To manage a review, you should have experience with the review process and knowledge of the library’s domain. To volunteer to become a review manager, contact the current Review Wizards.

Review Wizards

Currently the review wizards are Mateusz Łoskot (mateusz@loskot.net) and John Phillips (johnphillipsithaca@gmail.com).

See Also