Code of Conduct

We endorse the Python Community Code of Conduct:

The Invenio community is made up of members from around the globe with a diverse set of skills, personalities, and experiences. It is through these differences that our community experiences great successes and continued growth. When you’re working with members of the community, we encourage you to follow these guidelines which help steer our interactions and strive to keep Invenio a positive, successful, and growing community.

A member of the Invenio community is:

1. Open. Members of the community are open to collaboration, whether it’s on RFCs, patches, problems, or otherwise. We’re receptive to constructive comment and criticism, as the experiences and skill sets of other members contribute to the whole of our efforts. We’re accepting of all who wish to take part in our activities, fostering an environment where anyone can participate and everyone can make a difference.

2. Considerate. Members of the community are considerate of their peers – other Invenio users. We’re thoughtful when addressing the efforts of others, keeping in mind that often times the labor was completed simply for the good of the community. We’re attentive in our communications, whether in person or online, and we’re tactful when approaching differing views.

3. Respectful. Members of the community are respectful. We’re respectful of others, their positions, their skills, their commitments, and their efforts. We’re respectful of the volunteer efforts that permeate the Invenio community. We’re respectful of the processes set forth in the community, and we work within them. When we disagree, we are courteous in raising our issues.

Overall, we’re good to each other. We contribute to this community not because we have to, but because we want to. If we remember that, these guidelines will come naturally.

We recommend the “egoless” programming principles (Gerald Weinberg, The Psychology of Computer Programming, 1971):

  1. Understand and accept that you will make mistakes. The point is to find them early, before they make it into production. Fortunately, except for the few of us developing rocket guidance software at JPL, mistakes are rarely fatal in our industry, so we can, and should, learn, laugh, and move on.
  2. You are not your code. Remember that the entire point of a review is to find problems, and problems will be found. Don’t take it personally when one is uncovered.
  3. No matter how much “karate” you know, someone else will always know more. Such an individual can teach you some new moves if you ask. Seek and accept input from others, especially when you think it’s not needed.
  4. Don’t rewrite code without consultation. There’s a fine line between “fixing code” and “rewriting code.” Know the difference, and pursue stylistic changes within the framework of a code review, not as a lone enforcer.
  5. Treat people who know less than you with respect, deference, and patience. Nontechnical people who deal with developers on a regular basis almost universally hold the opinion that we are prima donnas at best and crybabies at worst. Don’t reinforce this stereotype with anger and impatience.
  6. The only constant in the world is change. Be open to it and accept it with a smile. Look at each change to your requirements, platform, or tool as a new challenge, not as some serious inconvenience to be fought.
  7. The only true authority stems from knowledge, not from position. Knowledge engenders authority, and authority engenders respect – so if you want respect in an egoless environment, cultivate knowledge.
  8. Fight for what you believe, but gracefully accept defeat. Understand that sometimes your ideas will be overruled. Even if you do turn out to be right, don’t take revenge or say, “I told you so” more than a few times at most, and don’t make your dearly departed idea a martyr or rallying cry.
  9. Don’t be “the guy in the room”. Don’t be the guy coding in the dark office emerging only to buy cola. The guy in the room is out of touch, out of sight, and out of control and has no place in an open, collaborative environment.
  10. Critique code instead of people – be kind to the coder, not to the code. As much as possible, make all of your comments positive and oriented to improving the code. Relate comments to local standards, program specs, increased performance, etc.