[Mapbender_dev] Just an old thought on rewriting from scratch

[Seven (aka Arnulf)]

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Karim Malhas wrote:
> I can't find the document anymore, but when I read it, I
> thought of Joel and Mapbender. It was about documentation, but it
> applies in more areas than that (summarizing from memory):
> 
>     When writing documentation, don't write down all the steps you took to
>     arrive at a solution - you found the best way, now write down what the
>     easiest, correct way to arrive at that solution is so that the people
>     reading the documentation will not have take all the detours you took.
> 
> So: "Don't pretend to be more stupid that you are."
> 
> Applied to Mapbender I would say we are past the date where gradual
> improvement would be the faster,easier way to arrive at the kind of
> codebase we would like to have, and we would still have to break
> backwards compatability along the way. 
> 
> We mostly know where the problems lie, we mostly know how to do it
> better - why not do that instead of taking the painful tour through
> multiple years of incompatible codechanges?
> 
> It's true, we not going to use the old codebase, but it doesn't mean we
> are ging to start over from scratch -  by using exisiting libraries, as we
> are going to, leaves the pluming to them and  let's us focus on the part
> that makes Mapbender Mapbender.
> 
> 
> Karim

Karim,
I am concerned that we will not have the required funding to really get
MB 3 off the ground. This is tied to several issues.

One is, that our developer community is pretty disconnected to the
outside world. I learned this lessen when hearing about MB3 specifics in
a public event. As a member of the PSC this is somewhat strange, to
express it mildly.

The other issue is that progress on MB3 - although decided last year has
not really taken place (except maybe in the inside group, but nothing
has percolated outside). This method will not work to build a Mapbender
3 that is really usable until the end of the year. This is why I brought
up the funding idea during the user meeting. With 100k [1] it should be
possible - provided there are developers who can actually spend this
money in coding. And last but not least there are some specifics to
Mapbender that really need more collaborative thinking up front than
coding by individuals. Especially in this initial phase this might even
be the most important aspect - if we want to continue to serve the niche
that Mapbender has found for itself.

Looking forward to more dialog on this.

Cheers,
Arnulf

[1] Mind me, this is just a random figure, but it should be clear that
with the on and off code sprint week end and a few hacks at home we will
not get a production stable MB 3 out ever.




- --
Exploring Space, Time and Mind
http://arnulf.us
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