Project code of conduct

[pbeaucage]

With contributions to PyHyper growing, I think it may be time to add a project code of conduct. Not motivated by anything specific and certainly not motivated by anything in this community, but my impression is that it's better when these things exist long before they become necessary.

I did a little survey of large code projects and the value statement I like the best is the one from SciPy:

Introduction This code of conduct applies to all spaces managed by the SciPy project, including all public and private mailing lists, issue trackers, wikis, blogs, Twitter, and any other communication channel used by our community. The SciPy project does not organize in-person events, however, events related to our community should have a code of conduct similar in spirit to this one.

This code of conduct should be honored by everyone who participates in the SciPy community formally or informally, or claims any affiliation with the project, in any project-related activities, and, especially, when representing the project, in any role.

This code is neither exhaustive nor complete. It serves to distill our common understanding of a collaborative, shared environment and goals. Please try to follow this code in spirit as much as in letter, to create a friendly and productive environment that enriches the surrounding community.

Specific guidelines We strive to:

Be open. We invite anyone to participate in our community. We prefer to use public methods of communication for project-related messages, unless discussing something sensitive. This applies to messages for help or project-related support, too; not only is a public-support request much more likely to result in an answer to a question, it also ensures that any inadvertent mistakes in answering are more easily detected and corrected.

Be empathetic, welcoming, friendly, and patient. We work together to resolve conflict, and assume good intentions. We may all experience some frustration from time to time, but we do not allow frustration to turn into a personal attack. A community where people feel uncomfortable or threatened is not a productive one.

Be collaborative. Our work will be used by other people, and in turn we will depend on the work of others. When we make something for the benefit of the project, we are willing to explain to others how it works, so that they can build on the work to make it even better. Any decision we make will affect users and colleagues, and we take those consequences seriously when making decisions.

Be inquisitive. Nobody knows everything! Asking questions early avoids many problems later, so we encourage questions, although we may direct them to the appropriate forum. We will try hard to be responsive and helpful.

Be careful in the words that we choose. We are careful and respectful in our communication and we take responsibility for our own speech. Be kind to others. Do not insult or put down other participants. We will not accept harassment or other exclusionary behavior, such as:

Violent threats or language directed against another person.

Sexist, racist, or otherwise discriminatory jokes and language.

Posting sexually explicit or violent material.

Posting (or threatening to post) other people’s personally identifying information (“doxing”).

Sharing private content, such as emails sent privately or non-publicly, or unlogged forums, such as IRC channel history, without the sender’s consent.

Personal insults, especially those using racist or sexist terms.

Unwelcome sexual attention.

Excessive profanity. Please avoid swearwords; people differ greatly in their sensitivity to swearing.

Repeated harassment of others. In general, if someone asks you to stop, then stop.

Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior.

Diversity statement The SciPy project welcomes and encourages participation by everyone. We are committed to being a community that everyone enjoys being part of. Although we may not always be able to accommodate each individual’s preferences, we try our best to treat everyone kindly.

No matter how you identify yourself or how others perceive you: we welcome you. Though no list can hope to be comprehensive, we explicitly honor diversity in: age, culture, ethnicity, genotype, gender identity or expression, language, national origin, neurotype, phenotype, political beliefs, profession, race, religion, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, subculture and technical ability, to the extent that these do not conflict with this code of conduct.

If anyone has any thoughts on this: areas that this doesn't cover, areas that other codes cover better, etc... this is the time and place.

[pbeaucage]

done!