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Sender: Doug Cutting <cutting@gmail.com>
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Date: Mon, 09 Mar 2009 15:06:45 -0700
From: Doug Cutting <cutting@apache.org>
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To: general@lucene.apache.org
Subject: Re: [DISCUSS] Archive Lucy
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Grant Ingersoll wrote:
> Therefore, it is with some hesitation that I suggest we mothball Lucy.

When committers are inactive for a year, we ask them if they'd like to 
be made emeritus.  Usually they either don't respond or they say yes. 
If they say "no" we give them the benefit of the doubt for a while 
longer.  A similar process is followed for Apache members who've been 
inactive.  Inactivity should not be punished: we're all volunteers.

If there's a decent chance that Lucy will become active soon then we 
don't want to further burden that.  Marvin has argued that there's a 
strong chance Lucy will become active soon.  I'm inclined to give him 
the benefit of the doubt for another six months or so before we do 
anything that would be nontrivial to reverse.

So if "mothballing" would be easy to reverse, it might be okay.  We 
could just, e.g., change the website to say, "inactive", remove the 
website from the TLP's website and remove commit privileges, but not 
remove accounts, mailing lists or JIRA instances.  Then reversal would 
take about 10 minutes of the PMC chair's time.  Marvin or others could 
petition this list to have it reversed.

But I'd also be fine with putting the project on notice for a few 
months, with the understanding that if activity doesn't pick up soon, it 
will be mothballed, as outlined above.  Then, after mothballing, if 
nothing happens for a while longer, we remove it altogether.  At each 
transition we should invite discussion.  I don't see much point in 
rushing this.

This path does risk dragging out the pain, so we shouldn't go down it 
too lightly.  Marvin, do you expect you'll be actively committing code 
to Lucy over the next six months?  If so, I think we should give him 
that, if not, we should mothball now as outlined above.

Another analysis to consider: If Marvin came to us today and pitched 
Lucy, would we accept it as a single-committer subproject?  If not, then 
we should mothball now.  If so, then we can give him the benefit of the 
doubt for a bit longer.

Note that, if we give notice now, and nothing happens in six months, 
that's likely to considerably reduce our patience.

Doug

P.S. I hereby resign as a Lucy committer.