ICT Cooperation Principles
From SI Exco News
Servas chapters can choose to participate in the Dolphin software project as follows:
- The Dolphin design philosophy and practice will be to accommodate all new desired additive features. Wherever appropriate, each feature will be configurable so chapters can decide to enable or disable it and configure its options.
- Chapters will have access to the complete Dolphin design document at all times. Their input is enthusiastically encouraged.
- Any chapter can request new features through a discussion process with the Dolphin steering committee. If the committee can't reach agreement with the requester, the chapter may unilaterally decide to add the feature to the system as long as it funds or provides the necessary development and testing.
- Every Dolphin feature, regardless of origin, will be available to all chapters. This doesn't preclude requiring a financial buy-in to reimburse chapters for self-funding -- otherwise there would be a perverse incentive to turn down every requested enhancement in the hope that a chapter will add it at its own expense.
- The Dolphin system will be well documented and designed to allow chapters to realistically make enhancements with their own qualified programmers. It will support the addition of multiple presentation languages. Chapters will be provided with a staging version of Dolphin code and data on request for use in developing enhancements.
- The live version of Dolphin will only be updated with the approval of the Dolphin committee. Such approval must be given when an enhancement is shown to meet coding standards and work properly within the system.
- As a last resort, any chapter may permanently withdraw from Dolphin at any time and retain the right to independently run the then-current version locally, subject to fulfilling any financial obligations.
