matplotlib-devel

[matplotlib-devel] Matplotlib and Numfocus Fiscal Sponsorship Agreement (FSA)

[Michael D. <md...@st...>]

*

Matplotlib is a widely used, well regarded, and powerful visualization 
library that has dominated the Python visualization stack for over a 
decade. However, to maintain that position, matplotlib must continue to 
evolve. Complementary or alternative libraries are appearing at an 
increasing rate, including browser-based plotting and GPU acceleration. 
To maintain its leadership position for the next decade, Matplotlib must 
interface with these alternatives while simultaneously expanding its 
capabilities and becoming easier to use and learn.


Matplotlib’s large existing user base (greater than 50,000) means that 
new developments need to be carefully balanced with maintaining existing 
interfaces.  With the large user and code base comes a significant 
maintenance and user-support burden.  These responsibilities currently 
account for a majority of the core-developer time spent on matplotlib 
and has resulted in both the code base and community being in a 
healthier state than ever before. Even 6 years ago there was no 
automated testing to speak of and the number of contributors continues 
to soar on github. However, this effort is, for the most part, done on a 
volunteer basis in the nights and weekends of the core developers.  To 
go beyond this maintenance level—to make step-change improvements for 
the benefit of matplotlib’s users—will require funding for full-time 
developers. Inspired and encouraged by the example of IPython, we would 
like to begin the process of fundraising.


Managing funding on the needed scale is a complex and time-consuming 
process.  Thankfully, NumFOCUS, a 501(c)3 charity organisation 
co-founded by John Hunter, offers a fiscal sponsorship agreement to 
minimize the administrative and legal burden on open source projects. We 
would like to enlist NumFOCUS as our agents in all legal and financial 
matters, including banking, accepting donations as a non-profit, 
payroll, and access to legal counsel.  As part of the agreement, 
NumFOCUS would charge a percentage of all funds raised to cover their 
costs.  The full text of the agreement is attached.


To comply with the legal and accounting requirements of a non-profit, 
matplotlib needs to form an administrative body to interact with 
NumFOCUS and direct the disbursement of any funds.  The proposed initial 
members of the body, are myself (Mike Droettboom), Eric Firing, Phil 
Elson, and Thomas Caswell, with Thomas acting as the point of contact 
with NumFOCUS.


In practice, signing an FSA will have very little impact on the 
matplotlib project itself - it will still be BSD-licensed and 
community-driven as it has always been, and the only motivation for 
doing this is to give us an opportunity to apply for funding to do more 
work on matplotlib. We'd like to canvas the community's opinion on the 
matter, but to put a concrete timeline on the discussion, we would like 
to propose signing an FSA with NumFOCUS in 3 weeks (Feb 10th 2015) 
unless there is a major community discomfort with us doing so.


Cheers,
Michael Droettboom

*

-- 
Michael Droettboom
Science Software Branch
Space Telescope Science Institute

http://www.droettboom.com

Re: [matplotlib-devel] [Matplotlib-users] Matplotlib and Numfocus Fiscal Sponsorship Agreement (FSA)

[Michiel de H. <mjl...@ya...>]

+1

Best,
-Michiel

--------------------------------------------
On Wed, 1/21/15, Michael Droettboom <md...@st...> wrote:

 Subject: [Matplotlib-users] Matplotlib and Numfocus Fiscal Sponsorship	Agreement (FSA)
 To: "mat...@li..." <mat...@li...>, "matplotlib-users" <mat...@li...>
 Date: Wednesday, January 21, 2015, 12:48 AM
 
 
   
 
     
   
   
     
     
       Matplotlib
           is a widely used, well regarded, and powerful
 visualization
           library that has dominated the Python
 visualization stack for
           over a decade. However, to maintain that position,
 matplotlib
           must continue to evolve. Complementary or
 alternative
           libraries are appearing at an increasing rate,
 including
           browser-based plotting and GPU acceleration. To
 maintain its
           leadership position for the next decade,
 Matplotlib must
           interface with these alternatives while
 simultaneously
           expanding its capabilities and becoming easier to
 use and
           learn.
       
 
       Matplotlib’s
           large existing user base (greater than 50,000)
 means that new
           developments need to be carefully balanced with
 maintaining
           existing interfaces.  With the large user and
 code base comes
           a significant maintenance and user-support burden.
  These
           responsibilities currently account for a majority
 of the
           core-developer time spent on matplotlib and has
 resulted in
           both the code base and community being in a
 healthier state
           than ever before. Even 6 years ago there was no
 automated
           testing to speak of and the number of contributors
 continues
           to soar on github. However, this effort is, for
 the most part,
           done on a volunteer basis in the nights and
 weekends of the
           core developers.  To go beyond this maintenance
 level—to make
           step-change improvements for the benefit of
 matplotlib’s
           users—will require funding for full-time
 developers. Inspired
           and encouraged by the example of IPython, we would
 like to
           begin the process of fundraising.
       
 
       Managing
           funding on the needed scale is a complex and
 time-consuming
           process.  Thankfully, NumFOCUS, a 501(c)3 charity
 organisation
           co-founded by John Hunter, offers a fiscal
 sponsorship
           agreement to minimize the administrative and legal
 burden on
           open source projects. We would like to enlist
 NumFOCUS as our
           agents in all legal and financial matters,
 including banking,
           accepting donations as a non-profit, payroll, and
 access to
           legal counsel.  As part of the agreement,
 NumFOCUS would
           charge a percentage of all funds raised to cover
 their costs.
            The full text of the agreement is
 attached.
       
 
       To
           comply with the legal and accounting requirements
 of a
           non-profit, matplotlib needs to form an
 administrative body to
           interact with NumFOCUS and direct the disbursement
 of any
           funds.  The proposed initial members of the body,
 are myself
           (Mike Droettboom), Eric Firing, Phil Elson, and
 Thomas
           Caswell, with Thomas acting as the point of
 contact with
           NumFOCUS.
       
 
       In
           practice, signing an FSA will have very little
 impact on the
           matplotlib project itself - it will still be
 BSD-licensed and
           community-driven as it has always been, and the
 only
           motivation for doing this is to give us an
 opportunity to
           apply for funding to do more work on matplotlib.
 We'd like to
           canvas the community's opinion on the matter,
 but to put a
           concrete timeline on the discussion, we would like
 to propose
           signing an FSA with NumFOCUS in 3 weeks (Feb 10th
 2015) unless
           there is a major community discomfort with us
 doing so. 
 
         
       
 
           Cheers,
 
           Michael Droettboom
 
         
     
 
     
     -- 
 Michael Droettboom
 Science Software Branch
 Space Telescope Science Institute
 
 http://www.droettboom.com
   
 
 
 -----Inline Attachment Follows-----
 
 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 New Year. New Location. New Benefits. New Data Center in
 Ashburn, VA.
 GigeNET is offering a free month of service with a new
 server in Ashburn.
 Choose from 2 high performing configs, both with 100TB of
 bandwidth.
 Higher redundancy.Lower latency.Increased
 capacity.Completely compliant.
 http://p.sf.net/sfu/gigenet
 -----Inline Attachment Follows-----
 
 _______________________________________________
 Matplotlib-users mailing list
 Mat...@li...
 https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/matplotlib-users
 

Re: [matplotlib-devel] Matplotlib and Numfocus Fiscal Sponsorship Agreement (FSA)

[Chris B. <chr...@no...>]

+1 -- sounds great!



On Tue, Jan 20, 2015 at 7:48 AM, Michael Droettboom <md...@st...> wrote:

>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> * Matplotlib is a widely used, well regarded, and powerful visualization
> library that has dominated the Python visualization stack for over a
> decade. However, to maintain that position, matplotlib must continue to
> evolve. Complementary or alternative libraries are appearing at an
> increasing rate, including browser-based plotting and GPU acceleration. To
> maintain its leadership position for the next decade, Matplotlib must
> interface with these alternatives while simultaneously expanding its
> capabilities and becoming easier to use and learn. Matplotlib’s large
> existing user base (greater than 50,000) means that new developments need
> to be carefully balanced with maintaining existing interfaces.  With the
> large user and code base comes a significant maintenance and user-support
> burden.  These responsibilities currently account for a majority of the
> core-developer time spent on matplotlib and has resulted in both the code
> base and community being in a healthier state than ever before. Even 6
> years ago there was no automated testing to speak of and the number of
> contributors continues to soar on github. However, this effort is, for the
> most part, done on a volunteer basis in the nights and weekends of the core
> developers.  To go beyond this maintenance level—to make step-change
> improvements for the benefit of matplotlib’s users—will require funding for
> full-time developers. Inspired and encouraged by the example of IPython, we
> would like to begin the process of fundraising. Managing funding on the
> needed scale is a complex and time-consuming process.  Thankfully,
> NumFOCUS, a 501(c)3 charity organisation co-founded by John Hunter, offers
> a fiscal sponsorship agreement to minimize the administrative and legal
> burden on open source projects. We would like to enlist NumFOCUS as our
> agents in all legal and financial matters, including banking, accepting
> donations as a non-profit, payroll, and access to legal counsel.  As part
> of the agreement, NumFOCUS would charge a percentage of all funds raised to
> cover their costs.  The full text of the agreement is attached. To comply
> with the legal and accounting requirements of a non-profit, matplotlib
> needs to form an administrative body to interact with NumFOCUS and direct
> the disbursement of any funds.  The proposed initial members of the body,
> are myself (Mike Droettboom), Eric Firing, Phil Elson, and Thomas Caswell,
> with Thomas acting as the point of contact with NumFOCUS. In practice,
> signing an FSA will have very little impact on the matplotlib project
> itself - it will still be BSD-licensed and community-driven as it has
> always been, and the only motivation for doing this is to give us an
> opportunity to apply for funding to do more work on matplotlib. We'd like
> to canvas the community's opinion on the matter, but to put a concrete
> timeline on the discussion, we would like to propose signing an FSA with
> NumFOCUS in 3 weeks (Feb 10th 2015) unless there is a major community
> discomfort with us doing so. Cheers, Michael Droettboom *
>
> --
> Michael Droettboom
> Science Software Branch
> Space Telescope Science Institute
> http://www.droettboom.com
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> New Year. New Location. New Benefits. New Data Center in Ashburn, VA.
> GigeNET is offering a free month of service with a new server in Ashburn.
> Choose from 2 high performing configs, both with 100TB of bandwidth.
> Higher redundancy.Lower latency.Increased capacity.Completely compliant.
> http://p.sf.net/sfu/gigenet
> _______________________________________________
> Matplotlib-devel mailing list
> Mat...@li...
> https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/matplotlib-devel
>
>


-- 

Christopher Barker, Ph.D.
Oceanographer

Emergency Response Division
NOAA/NOS/OR&R            (206) 526-6959   voice
7600 Sand Point Way NE   (206) 526-6329   fax
Seattle, WA  98115       (206) 526-6317   main reception

Chr...@no...

Re: [matplotlib-devel] Matplotlib and Numfocus Fiscal Sponsorship Agreement (FSA)

[Nicolas P. R. <Nic...@in...>]

+1. Great news.

Nicolas.

> On 21 Jan 2015, at 20:22, Chris Barker <chr...@no...> wrote:
> 
> +1 -- sounds great!
> 
> 
> 
> On Tue, Jan 20, 2015 at 7:48 AM, Michael Droettboom <md...@st...> wrote:
> Matplotlib
>           is a widely used, well regarded, and powerful visualization
>           library that has dominated the Python visualization stack for
>           over a decade. However, to maintain that position, matplotlib
>           must continue to evolve. Complementary or alternative
>           libraries are appearing at an increasing rate, including
>           browser-based plotting and GPU acceleration. To maintain its
>           leadership position for the next decade, Matplotlib must
>           interface with these alternatives while simultaneously
>           expanding its capabilities and becoming easier to use and
>           learn.
> 
> 
> Matplotlib’s
>           large existing user base (greater than 50,000) means that new
>           developments need to be carefully balanced with maintaining
>           existing interfaces.  With the large user and code base comes
>           a significant maintenance and user-support burden.  These
>           responsibilities currently account for a majority of the
>           core-developer time spent on matplotlib and has resulted in
>           both the code base and community being in a healthier state
>           than ever before. Even 6 years ago there was no automated
>           testing to speak of and the number of contributors continues
>           to soar on github. However, this effort is, for the most part,
>           done on a volunteer basis in the nights and weekends of the
>           core developers.  To go beyond this maintenance level—to make
>           step-change improvements for the benefit of matplotlib’s
>           users—will require funding for full-time developers. Inspired
>           and encouraged by the example of IPython, we would like to
>           begin the process of fundraising.
> 
> 
> Managing
>           funding on the needed scale is a complex and time-consuming
>           process.  Thankfully, NumFOCUS, a 501(c)3 charity organisation
>           co-founded by John Hunter, offers a fiscal sponsorship
>           agreement to minimize the administrative and legal burden on
>           open source projects. We would like to enlist NumFOCUS as our
>           agents in all legal and financial matters, including banking,
>           accepting donations as a non-profit, payroll, and access to
>           legal counsel.  As part of the agreement, NumFOCUS would
>           charge a percentage of all funds raised to cover their costs.
>            The full text of the agreement is attached.
> 
> 
> To
>           comply with the legal and accounting requirements of a
>           non-profit, matplotlib needs to form an administrative body to
>           interact with NumFOCUS and direct the disbursement of any
>           funds.  The proposed initial members of the body, are myself
>           (Mike Droettboom), Eric Firing, Phil Elson, and Thomas
>           Caswell, with Thomas acting as the point of contact with
>           NumFOCUS.
> 
> 
> In
>           practice, signing an FSA will have very little impact on the
>           matplotlib project itself - it will still be BSD-licensed and
>           community-driven as it has always been, and the only
>           motivation for doing this is to give us an opportunity to
>           apply for funding to do more work on matplotlib. We'd like to
>           canvas the community's opinion on the matter, but to put a
>           concrete timeline on the discussion, we would like to propose
>           signing an FSA with NumFOCUS in 3 weeks (Feb 10th 2015) unless
>           there is a major community discomfort with us doing so. 
> 
> 
>         
> 
> 
> 
>           Cheers,
> 
> 
>           Michael Droettboom
> 
> 
>         
> 
> 
> -- 
> Michael Droettboom
> Science Software Branch
> Space Telescope Science Institute
> 
> 
> http://www.droettboom.com
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> New Year. New Location. New Benefits. New Data Center in Ashburn, VA.
> GigeNET is offering a free month of service with a new server in Ashburn.
> Choose from 2 high performing configs, both with 100TB of bandwidth.
> Higher redundancy.Lower latency.Increased capacity.Completely compliant.
> http://p.sf.net/sfu/gigenet
> _______________________________________________
> Matplotlib-devel mailing list
> Mat...@li...
> https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/matplotlib-devel
> 
> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> 
> Christopher Barker, Ph.D.
> Oceanographer
> 
> Emergency Response Division
> NOAA/NOS/OR&R            (206) 526-6959   voice
> 7600 Sand Point Way NE   (206) 526-6329   fax
> Seattle, WA  98115       (206) 526-6317   main reception
> 
> Chr...@no...
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> New Year. New Location. New Benefits. New Data Center in Ashburn, VA.
> GigeNET is offering a free month of service with a new server in Ashburn.
> Choose from 2 high performing configs, both with 100TB of bandwidth.
> Higher redundancy.Lower latency.Increased capacity.Completely compliant.
> http://p.sf.net/sfu/gigenet_______________________________________________
> Matplotlib-devel mailing list
> Mat...@li...
> https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/matplotlib-devel