.. _core-devs:

+++++++++++++++++++++++
CPython Core Developers
+++++++++++++++++++++++

What is a CPython Core Developer?
=================================

Video of Mariatta Wijaya's talk: "What is a Python Core Developer?" (Pycon US
2018): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhj7eb6TrtI

No one has exclusive control over any part of the code base
===========================================================

Email of the Steering Council (2010):
https://mail.python.org/archives/list/python-committers@python.org/message/DCKAPZVXEQHP7OPS3GLEVNDXMXX5QAE6/

How to increase the number of core developers?
==============================================

`Guido van Rossum, June 2018
<https://mail.python.org/pipermail/python-committers/2018-June/005519.html>`_
about the low number of active core developers:

    The best course of action seems to be to take measures to acquire new
    committers (and contributors), not to try and reactivate old inactive
    committers.

* :ref:`Mentoring <mentoring>`
* Write less code, spend more time on reviews and mentoring

Lists of Core developers
========================

* https://github.com/python/voters/
* https://github.com/orgs/python/teams/python-core/members
* https://discuss.python.org/groups/committers
* https://bugs.python.org/user?iscommitter=1&@action=search&@sort=username&@pagesize=300
* https://devguide.python.org/developers/
* (outdated) https://hg.python.org/committers.txt
* https://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-committers members

Statistics
==========

Statistics on *new* CPython core developer per year using `devguide
<https://devguide.python.org/developers/>`_ as data:

* 1989: 1
* 1992: 2
* 1994: 1
* 1996: 2
* 1997: 1
* 1998: 3
* 1999: 2
* 2000: 17
* 2001: 10
* 2002: 8
* 2003: 7
* 2004: 7
* 2005: 4
* 2006: 7
* 2007: 10
* 2008: 13
* 2009: 7
* 2010: 16
* 2011: 12
* 2012: 7
* 2013: 3
* 2014: 6
* 2015: 2
* 2016: 4
* 2017: 4
* 2018: 6
* 2019: 7
* 2020: 5
* 2021: 3
* 2022: 8
* 2023: 5

Links:

* [python-committers] Statistics: growth of core dev number vs growth of the code size/complexity
  https://mail.python.org/pipermail/python-committers/2017-December/004983.html
* https://mail.python.org/pipermail/python-committers/2018-June/005517.html

October 2017:

* **6542** pull requests, **4966** merged
* **848** contributors (including core devs)
* **34** core developers active on GitHub (4% of all contributors)
* 24% of PR are written by core devs

Process to become a core developer
==================================

https://github.com/vstinner/misc/blob/master/cpython/pep-core_dev_process.rst

* [python-committers] Requirements to get the "bug triage" permission?
  https://mail.python.org/pipermail/python-committers/2017-December/004960.html
* [python-committers] What is a CPython core developer?
  https://mail.python.org/pipermail/python-committers/2017-September/004865.html


Misc
====

* PyTexas: `Keynote: My Path to Becoming a Python Core Developer
  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOzUMQW4p0Y>`_ by Emily Morehouse-Valcarcel
* [python-committers] Should I merge a PR that I approved if it was written by a different core developer?
  https://mail.python.org/pipermail/python-committers/2017-September/004854.html


Steering Council
================

* https://github.com/python/steering-council
* `PEP 13 -- Python Language Governance
  <https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0013/>`_
* `PEP 8100 -- January 2019 steering council election
  <https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-8100/>`_


.. _removed-commit-bit:

Core developers who stopped contributing to Python
==================================================

Most core developers who stopped contributing did not announce it publicly,
or even did not tell anyone. They just disappear. Only a few made a public
announcement.

* January 2018: `Xavier de Gaye
  <https://mail.python.org/archives/list/python-committers@python.org/thread/NKCJC7TX5BJDQOCZX6JZEZR3LWQUZ2SP/>`_
  who maintained pdb and the Android support.

    I have decided for personal reasons to stop contributing to CPython as a
    core developer, that does not mean I will stop contributing to CPython. So
    please remove me from the list of core developers and revoke all my access
    rights. Thank you.

    Xavier.

* January, 2016: `Andrew MacIntyre
  <https://mail.python.org/archives/list/python-committers@python.org/thread/H2GFRDSWCRF7U5OS63VUS4YPAHWTXP4I/>`_.
  Extract of his email:

    As a practical matter I have not actively participated in Python
    development in some years and as a consequence I don't think I have any
    valid keys still on record.  Nor do I now have any operational OS/2
    systems to support the Python port to that platform that was my primary
    interest and contribution.

    (...)

    While the announcement today of the planned move of the Python
    repository to GitHub has no bearing whatsoever on my decision, I would
    note that GitHub's requirement that a person only have one account - to
    be used for both personal activity and any activity on behalf of an
    employer - is of sufficient concern to me that had I decided to continue
    as a committer I would be **seeking legal advice** concerning my position.
    I say this as to date I have been able to satisfy my employer's
    requirements for clear separation of my personal activities, including
    my participation in Python development, from my activities as an
    employee.  This has been possible by exclusively using only provably
    personal resources, including accounts and internet access, for personal
    activities.  Such clear separation becomes much more difficult when
    resources such as accounts are shared between personal and employee
    roles, especially when being seen to do the right thing is as important
    as actually doing the right thing.

* April, 2015: `Skip Montanaro <https://bugs.python.org/msg241740>`_:

    Alas, my commit bit long ago fell into disuse. I haven't checked anything
    in since long before the days of Mercurial and the current workflow. I
    would almost certainly mess something up. In fact, to avoid confusion in
    the future, removal of my commit bit might not be a bad idea.


Inactive core devs
==================

Current discussion: `devguide issue: Simplify developer log
<https://github.com/python/devguide/issues/390>`__.

Links:

* 2019-02-21: `Official list of core developers
  <https://discuss.python.org/t/official-list-of-core-developers/924>`_
* 2019-02-11: `Remove Coordinator role of inactive coordinators on bugs.python.org
  <https://discuss.python.org/t/remove-coordinator-role-of-inactive-coordinators-on-bugs-python-org/866>`_
* 2018-11-02: `devguide PR: Complete the core dev list
  <https://github.com/python/devguide/pull/434>`_
* 2018-09-18: `Which list of core developers is authoritative?
  <https://discuss.python.org/t/which-list-of-core-developers-is-authoritative/55>`_
* 2018-06-20: `devguide issue: Simplify developer log
  <https://github.com/python/devguide/issues/390>`__
* 2018-06-15: `[python-committers] Missing In Action
  <https://mail.python.org/pipermail/python-committers/2018-June/005588.html>`_
* 2018-06-02: `[python-committers] number of active core devs [was: Comments on moving issues to GitHub]
  <https://mail.python.org/pipermail/python-committers/2018-June/005517.html>`_
* 2017-12-06: `[python-committers] Statistics: growth of core dev number vs growth of the code size/complexity
  <https://mail.python.org/pipermail/python-committers/2017-December/004983.html>`_