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<h1>Boost Frequently Asked Questions</h1>

<p><strong>How do I download the libraries?</strong>
&nbsp; See <a href="../libs/libraries.htm#Download">Download</a> instructions.</p>

<p><b>What support is available for the libraries?</b>&nbsp; Try the <a
href="mailto:boost@egroups.com">boost@egroups.com</a> mailing list. </p>

<p><b>What do the Boost version numbers mean?&nbsp; </b>The scheme is x.y.z, where x is incremented only for massive changes, such as a reorganization of many libraries, y is incremented whenever a new library is added, and z is incremented for maintenance releases.  y and z are reset to 0 if
the value to the left changes.&nbsp;<br>
<br>
<b>How can the Boost libraries be used successfully for important projects?&nbsp;
</b>Many of the Boost libraries are actively maintained and improved, so backward compatibility with prior version isn't always possible.  Deal with this by freezing the version of the Boost libraries used by your project.  Only upgrade at points in your project's life cycle where a bit of change will not cause problems.  Individual bug fixes can always be obtained from the CVS repository. </p>

<p><b>How is a library accepted for posting on the site?</b>
See <a href="submission_process.htm">Library Submission Process</a></p>

<p><b>Is there any assurance libraries actually work as claimed?</b> No. The review
process will hopefully eliminate the most seriously flawed libraries, but a well
constructed library with hidden defects is likely to slip through. Encouraging ordinary
users to report their experience with a library is intended to address such concerns. </p>

<p><b>How does someone submit a comment?</b>&nbsp; Send email to <a
href="mailto:boost@egroups.com">boost@egroups.com</a>. </p>

<p><strong>How does someone submit a library?</strong> See <a href="lib_guide.htm">Library
Guidelines</a></p>

<p><b>Are commercial libraries requiring a fee acceptable?</b> No. However, a library that
a commercial enterprise makes available without fee is acceptable. If the description of
the library makes a low-key plug for the supplier, that is acceptable as long as the
library delivers real value and isn&#146;t just a Trojan horse for the plug.</p>

<p><b>Are shareware libraries acceptable?</b> No. At least initially, only free libraries
will be accepted.</p>

<p><strong>Are open source license libraries acceptable?</strong>&nbsp; Some
are, many are not.
Open source licenses often require redistribution or availability of source code,
inclusion of license document with machine-executable redistribution, give the initial
developer rights to licensee modifications, or need a lawyer to understand.&nbsp; These
would be immediate disqualifications for many business, commercial, and consumer
applications. Boost aims to avoid subjecting users to hard-to-comply-with license
terms. See <a href="lib_guide.htm##License">License requirements</a>.<br>
<br>
This is subject to review for a particularly important piece of software, or as the
industry changes.</p>

<p><b>Must full source code be provided?</b> Yes, these are source code libraries.</p>

<p><b>What about documentation?</b> A very simple library might be accepted with only a
well commented header file. For more substantial libraries, some form of documentation is
certainly going to be expected.&nbsp; HTML is the preferred form.</p>

<p><b>Are platform specific libraries acceptable?</b> There is a preference for portable
libraries. Libraries will be accepted that have portable interfaces but require platform
specific implementations, as long as the author supplies implementations for a couple of
disparate major operating systems.</p>

<p><b>Must a library do useful work? </b>No. A library meant as a teaching example or
demonstration might not actually do any work.</p>

<p><b>Who owns the libraries?</b> Presumably many authors will copyright their libraries.
Others authors may wish to place their libraries in the public domain. The Boost.org
policy is to only accept libraries with a clear copyright notice.&nbsp; It is up to
potential users to decide if they find the copyright terms acceptable, and to not use
libraries with unacceptable copyrights.</p>

<p><b>Is there a formal relationship between Boost.org and the C++ Standards Committee?</b>
&nbsp; No. The people who started Boost.org were all on the committee, but that was just
happenstance.</p>

<p><b>Will the Boost.org libraries become part of the next C++ Standard?</b>&nbsp; Some
might, someday off in the future, but that is up to the standards committee.&nbsp; To the
extent a library becomes &quot;existing practice&quot;, the likelihood increases that
someone will propose it for future standardization. Submitting a library to Boost.org is
one way to establish existing practice - as long as enough people are interested to
download and use it!</p>

<p><b>Is the web site a commercial business?</b> No. It is just some people getting together
as a kind of cyberspace civic association. If it ever needs to incorporate, it would be as
non-profit organization.</p>

<p><b>Is there any charge for submitting libraries or reviews to Boost.org?</b> No. Unlike
the standards committees, you don&#146;t have to pay to volunteer!</p>

<p><b>Will the site include material beyond libraries?</b> The main focus is on libraries,
but if people contribute occasional articles or other material to make the site more
interesting, that could be a nice fit.</p>

<p><b>Why isn't there a separate boost mailing list for my favorite
library?&nbsp;</b> One of the reasons for boost's success has been the cross-pollination of ideas between diverse library
projects and the occasional look into other threads by otherwise uninterested parties. The more people participate, the less they tend to be annoyed by
"noise".</p>

<p><b>How can I cope with the large volume of boost mailing list messages?</b>&nbsp;
One approach is to use the eGroups digest option; that cuts the email blizzard
down to about three (long) messages per day, so you can glance over the subjects
summary at the top and quickly read what you think is important.&nbsp;The
eGroups &quot;no mail/web only&quot; option is best if you just occasionally
want to look at messages.</p>

<p>Yet another approach is to use your email program's capabilities to filter messages and automatically
transfer them into several boost folders.&nbsp;Then only read the folders you
care about. Boost list posters are
encouraged to include keywords in the subject like &quot;thread&quot;,
&quot;review&quot;, and &quot;CVS&quot; to aid message filtering.</p>

<hr>

<p>Revised <!--webbot bot="Timestamp" S-Type="EDITED" S-Format="%d %B, %Y" startspan -->08 March, 2001<!--webbot bot="Timestamp" endspan i-checksum="28780" -->
</p>
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