Published on: 2015-10-15T08:38:35+00:00
In the bitcoin-dev mailing list, there has been a discussion about the need for participants to disclose any potential conflicts of interest they may have. This is important in order to maintain transparency and trust within the project. However, there has been some concern about the use of labels such as "Bitcoin maximalist" which limit the extent of discourse and can lead to name-calling. Some participants believe that anyone who is not a Bitcoin maximalist may have a conflict of interest if they are involved in Bitcoin development.This issue has caused dissatisfaction among users and investors, as they need to trust that developers are working towards the success of Bitcoin. It has been suggested that the mailing list would be better off without a policy document enforced by moderators. The idea is to keep the protocol free of financial censorship, which extends to language as well. People should be able to express themselves freely, even if others on the list disagree with them.Jeff Garzik, a participant in the bitcoin-dev mailing list, has emphasized the importance of disclosing conflicts of interest related to employment or other projects. He believes that over-disclosure is better than under-disclosure when it comes to perceived conflicts of interest. Garzik also discussed the term "Bitcoin maximalist" and how it has become an insult. He argues that anyone involved in Bitcoin development who is not a Bitcoin maximalist could potentially have a conflict of interest if they work for a company that competes with Bitcoin.The author of a message on the mailing list expressed concerns about the lack of an objective measure of what is considered "on-topic." They believe that someone will always call something "off topic" regardless of how relevant it actually is. The proposed list moderation policy aims to facilitate constructive discussions related to the technical development of the bitcoin protocol. However, the author argues that the current language of the policy needs further discussion and refinement. They suggest removing the enforcement and moderator sections and instead having an "about" section that outlines the purpose of the list and how participants are expected to treat each other.Luke Dashjr, another participant in the bitcoin-dev mailing list, suggested that only development-related discussions should be allowed on the list. Off-topic threads would be directed to other venues. He also expressed concern about discussions of conduct on the list, as it can create noise and distract from technical discussions.In October 2015, Jeff Garzik provided guidelines for etiquette on the forum. He emphasized the importance of being polite and providing helpful documentation or directing someone to more appropriate venues when they ask for help. He also stressed the need for conversations to remain focused and on-topic, and if a topic needs to be changed, a new thread should be started. At the time, there were no other venues provided for off-topic threads. Disclosing potential conflicts of interest seemed futile for anyone not exclusively associated with a single company or organization. Discussing conduct on the list was considered off-topic noise.The bitcoin-dev mailing list aims to facilitate constructive discussions related to the technical development of the bitcoin protocol and Bitcoin Core reference implementation. The proposed policy serves to maintain a welcoming and collaborative environment. It includes guidelines for being friendly, patient, civil, considerate, assuming good faith, respecting time and attention, and disclosing potential conflicts. Failure to observe the code may result in reprimand, probation, or removal from the list. The policy is enforced through direct contact, on-list discussion, or reaching out to moderators. Moderators are selected from various projects and roles to avoid any bias.Other resources that provide guidance for good behavior include Producing OSS by Karl Fogel, RFC 1855, and the Ubuntu Code of Conduct. The policy was inspired by codes of conduct used in other projects such as GNOME, Mozilla, and Ubuntu.
Updated on: 2023-08-01T16:39:22.353137+00:00