Author: Patrick Murck 2015-06-28 19:05:04
Published on: 2015-06-28T19:05:04+00:00
The core maintainer of Bitcoin Core codebase, Wladimir, has no more power than any other person with commit privileges to the GitHub repo. The process is designed in a way that ensures changes will reach some level of technical consensus before they are merged. Even if Wladimir commits a change, it could be reverted by any of the others. Upgrading to a new version of Bitcoin Core software is not automatic, so individuals and companies running the software have to choose to upgrade. Developers maintaining alternative implementations would also need to decide to merge those changes to the codebase they are independently maintaining. The Core Maintainer role is primarily about cat herding and project management of Bitcoin Core the open-source software project and not the bitcoin network. Although there are checks and balances, the issue about developers is the tremendous influence they have to veto any changes. The Bitcoin software development system is subject to attack from just a couple of people who have veto power. With all the crying and moaning about centralization, this should be a concern. There is no known mechanism for safely deploying controversial changes to the consensus rules. The outside influences and stake of the developer are relevant topics, and the same types of things are discussed in the context of miners, users, merchants, and exchanges. If a core developer has minimal stake in Bitcoin yet has major veto power over code change, that is a problem. Some kind of process needs to be developed that does not involve trying to convince one person to make the changes or a system that depends on unwritten, ever-changing rules maintained by a handful of people. However, for now, the process involves seeking consensus, and though the definition of "uncontroversial" is vague, it is quite obvious when a proposed change is controversial. Any other formal process would imply centralization in the decision-making of the consensus rules, which can destroy Bitcoin if corrupted.
Updated on: 2023-06-10T00:55:44.119123+00:00