SCOUG-Programming Mailing List Archives

Date:	Fri, 20 Jan 2006 00:50:39 PST8
From:	"Lynn H. Maxson" <lmaxson@pacbell.net >
Reply-To:	scoug-programming@scoug.com
To:	< "scoug-programming@scoug.com" > scoug-programming@scoug.com >
Subject:	SCOUG-Programming: Getting there--from purpose to detailed plan

Content Type: text/plain

Greg,

Actually we're taking our time. Some people take longer than
others. It's important that all participants fully understand so
that they might receive the full benefits.

We begin with an editor. An open source editor. We will
make changes to it, customize it to our purpose. We will do
what open source advocates claim as one of its advantages.
We need to understand it in some detail in order to make it
our own.

Now your estimate of a thousand pages of C code makes this
a challenge. What can we do to make it less so? What
problems do we face? How can we best resolve them? To
insure that open source lives up to its promise where the
individual can go in any direction of his choice we need to
eliminate any barrier due to the size of the source. It doesn't
do to speak of barriers in the abstract, but only as they
appear in our effort.

So let's just pick something associated strictly with itself. An
editor. Not some theory, but a real thing. Let's deal with it
first on its terms. Then let's change it on ours. In the process
come to a real, practical, and empirical understanding of the
problems facing an open source developer and gain some
insight into their resolution.

We begin with VIM. We will end up with something
significantly better...than anything else currently available in
any tool or collection of such. Getting from VIM to there will
depend upon the discoveries and their exploitation we
uncover on the way.

You remain free not to waste your time on any such venture
in which you perceive no value. I want open source to work.
I want more people feeling comfortable about tackling it as a
contributor as well as user. I want to turn potential
contributors on instead of off. What better opportunity for
doing this than in a group such as ours?

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