[Axiom-developer] Re: Fricas

[Bill Page]

Tim,

I am truly shocked and saddened by your demand to remove my updates
concerning the FriCAS project from the axiom-developer server. !!!
:-((  ?

But you are paying the bills for the entire axiom-developer.org server
so I have complied with your request. To me this clearly demonstrates
that an open source project (like Axiom used to be) should *never*
allow themselves to get into a situation where significant project
resources are controlled by only one individual. Never - even if you
once strongly believed in that person's good intentions.

So now what are you intentions? Are you really trying to alienate
everyone involved in the project?  I asked you a few weeks ago: "Do
you have any idea how much damage you are causing?". I guess that
question still stands. I really thought you had recovered from the
state that lead to the current acrimonious situation and so we could
just move on. Sigh. But now you have even *me* feeling like some of
our other colleagues who have already announced their resignation from
the project. I feel like I have been trying hard to do some damage
control and keep the Axiom project together but you have just stabbed
me in the back!

I believe that describing FricCAS the way I just attempted to do - in
the same way that we have previously described and supported Reduce,
Maxima, SymPy and Sage is not the same thing as promoting it -
certainly not any more than promoting progress in computer algebra
systems in general. I just cannot understand what you are thinking...

Under these circumstances I do not think I can continue to help
maintain the Axiom website on the axiom-developer server any more, at
least not until some very basic problems are resolved here. This makes
me very sad not only because I have put a lot of effort into it over
the last 4 years but also because I think it is still a very important
way of promoting Axiom and I still want Axiom to look good even if I
can not agree with you about how this should be done. Fortunately
there are still some other Axiom developers who have not yet resigned
and who have manager-level access to this web site so I am fairly sure
you can get by with their help.

I am not optimistic that any kind of "vote" out of this sitation is
possible. As the book quote points out, democracy is only likely to
happen in a mature well-populated project that has already sorted out
most of these differences. Right now we are lucky if we can even find
5 out out of the nearly 100 subscribers in the axiom-devel mailing
list who are willing to make a public statement about any of issues
that have been considered for vote-taking here recently. I get the
feeling either everyone is watching and waiting to see what happens
next, or else (maybe) very few people really care that much and they
really aren't watching at all.

So here we are. This is certainly not the kind of situation I thought
we would be in next time we met in person . (I presume you are still
planning to attend the ISSAC conference?) I thought I would be buying
you a beer - or maybe even a 4-course gourmet meal to celebrate  - not
arguing and biting nails. It's Damn disappointing :-( but by the way,
my invitation to dinner next week still stands.

Bill Page.


On 7/25/07, address@hidden <address@hidden> wrote:
> Bill,
>
> I see that you've decided to update the pages
> <http://wiki.axiomm-developer.org/AxiomCommunity>
> to include the fricas project. We discussed this issue previously
> on the mailing list.
>
> I suggest that you read the section:
> <http://producingoss.com/html-chunk/forks.html>
> from which I quote:
>    "If those initiating the fork feel that they are sprouting a
>     new branch off the main project, the perception question is
>     resolved immediately and easily. Everyone, both developers
>     and users, will treat the fork as a new project, with a new
>     name (perhaps based on the old name, but easily distinguishable
>     from it), a separate website, and a separate philosophy or goal."
>
> I strongly object to the dilution of the Axiom name and resources
> implied by your action. A fork implies the decision NOT to share
> resources. Please do NOT promote Fricas as Axiom in any forum.
> They are two entirely separate projects.
>
> We clearly disagree on this point.
>
> Until we have a mechanism for voting in place, and a vote is taken
> that results in community discussion and agreement that Fricas should
> be promoted as you have done, I ask you to remove your edits.
>
> Tim