[development] Encouraging Collaboration

[Earl Dunovant]

For the record, there will only be two Amazon modules in 4.7...I have Amazon
associate tools and Amazon search...the search will be folded entirely into
AAT. And back when I first released it, Ber suggested I combine efforts with
the author of the othe one. We agreed, but I got zero input so I just wrote
what I needed for myself.

I think I'm seen as one who doesn't play well with others...I've noticed my
comments only get responses when someone thinks they can correct me. You got
gatekeepers here like in any other group, and I'm finally going to mention
something that annoyed me. Before becoming familiar with the cultural
aspects of this group AAT shipped with my associate code as the default. I
figured anyone that used it would change it. Lot of objections...we don't
want people to think we're hustling them. So fine, i change it...as I said,
I didn't feel it would have a significant impact one way or the other. The
comment said i changed it because community sentiment ran against it. I got
an email complaining that I said it was "mere sentiment." My response was,
relax...your project, so your sentiment is enough reason to change it.

I'm not the one to whine in a public forum. I offer help when I think I can
be of help, I return code to the project that I benefit from. I am offered
little beyond the code base. That's just the way it is, I guess. But since
the topic came up...

On 11/18/05, Allie Micka <allie at pajunas.com> wrote:
>
> The 4.7 / Forms API upgrade is going to create a learning curve for
> many module developers, and some of the less-active module owners may
> not have the time and inclination to make the switch. That could be
> good news.
>
> A lot of these efforts are "learning experiences" that are not being
> maintained at all. Some of the authors can't be reached, and if
> you're too polite to overwrite those modules you start new. Some
> developers feel that it's more rewarding to have their name in lights
> than to collaborate on a module that's more useful and stable
> overall. Some people just don't play well with others.
>
> As an alternative to upgrading, some module developers could look at
> modules with similar functionality and try to help upgrade and
> enhance those. Do we really need 3 Amazon modules? 6 "mail this
> thing" modules? (one of these is my fault) Can the Flikr Block
> module be part of the Flikr Module? The list is endless.
>
> This is a big problem for new Drupal users and old timers alike.
> It's not clear which modules are being maintained and how well they
> work. A few months ago, I tried all the Amazon modules and
> discovered that each gave me about 60% of a solution. I finally just
> dropped the idea if using Amazon at all. I'm sure this sort of thing
> happens a lot, and we never even hear about it.
>
> I'm not saying that any of these modules deserves to die, or that
> they can't possibly be bringing anything new to the table, but I
> would offer these suggestions:
>
> - As part of the call for upgrades 4.7, recommend that module
> developers try to combine efforts
> - Encourage people to maintain TODO lists for modules so that
> others can understand overall goals and see if added functionality
> would be useful
> - Encourage people to archive and retire their abandoned projects
> from CVS.
>
>
> Allie Micka
> pajunas interactive, inc.
> http://www.pajunas.com
>
> scalable web hosting and open source strategies
>
>
>
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