Boost Mailing Lists (A.K.A. Discussion Groups)
The mailing lists are the heart of the Boost community. You may read the lists via full-content email or email digests.
Before Posting
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Boost Users mailing list
This list is oriented toward casual users of the Boost libraries. It is a good place to start if you are having trouble getting started with Boost or its individual libraries. Feel free to post both "newbie" and more challenging questions, but please check first to see if there's an appropriate Project-Specific list; you'll often get better answers in a forum dedicated to your problem area. This list is relatively low volume (less than 500 per month). Subscribe or unsubscribe at the Boost Users list home page.
Boost developers mailing list
This is the main Boost mailing list. It is high volume (over 1000 messages per month), very technical, and oriented toward Boost library developers. It is also read by many other members interested in watching the Boost library development process. Virtually all Boost decisions, major or minor, technical or otherwise, are reached via public discussion on this mailing list. It is where the formal reviews of proposed libraries take place. Subscribe or unsubscribe at https://lists.boost.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/boost.
When we talk about the "members of Boost", we are talking about those signed up for this main mailing list.
Archives for Boost developers list
Archives of Boost messages include the MailMan Archive on our home page.
Boost Announce mailing list
This is an announce-only list for notification of upcoming software releases and formal reviews of proposed libraries. One to three messages per month. Subscribe or unsubscribe at the Boost Announce list home page.
Boost Interest Mailing List
This list is a moderated low-traffic announcement-only list of interest to the Boost community. On-topic messages will include announcements of books, magazine articles, papers, talks, seminars, products, tools, events, or conferences on advanced uses of C++, generic/generative/meta-programming, and, of course, the Boost libraries. Off-topic will be discussion of any kind. Job postings are accepted at the moderators' discretion. Subscribe or unsubscribe at the Boost-Interest home page.
Project-Specific lists
Several mailing lists have been established for specific Boost projects:Boost.Build list
The mailing list for the Boost Build System is located here.
Boost CMake list
Development of the experimental CMake build system is being coordinated on the Boost CMake mailing list. Any questions about CMake should be asked here and not on the main Boost.Build list.
Python C++-Sig (for Boost.Python)
The Python C++-sig is not strictly Boost-specific, but nearly all the traffic concerns Boost.Python. See also the Language Binding list below. You can join the mailing list. There are also searchable archives at ASPN.
Language Binding
The Language Binding list is for discussion of a generalized framework for binding C++ to other languages and systems based on the technology of Boost.Python and Luabind. The plan is to provide a single front-end for describing bindings with runtime-pluggable back ends for binding to specific languages.
Boost.MPI Development
A separate developer mailing list for Boost.MPI specific topics is located here.
Boost.Spirit lists
Spirit has two additional mailing lists. Spirit-general for Spirit users and Spirit-devel for Spirit developers (open to anyone who wishes to hang out with Spirit coders).
Boost.Documentation list
The mailing list for the Boost Documentation System is located here.
uBLAS development (ublas-dev) list
A separate user and developer mailing list for Boost uBLAS specific topics is located here.
Thread development (threads-devel) list
A separate developer mailing list for Boost Thread specific topics is located here.
Important: This mailing list is for the discussion of the specification and implementation of Boost.Threads only — questions regarding usage should be directed to the Boost Users list, or the main Boost developers list.
Testing list
The setup, procedures and tools necessary for running Boost regression tests are discussed on this list. The list's main participants are regression runners - people who run Boost tests on a variety of compilers and platforms, and the maintainers of tools for collecting and processing test results.
Important: questions relevant to a wider audience, including questions about Boost.Test framework or test results for a particular library, should be posted to main development list.
Translation Groups
Boost doesn't have the resources to translate the documentation itself, but there is at least one separate group translating the documentation. If you have formed another, tell us on the documentation list and we'll add a link.
#boost IRC channel
In addition to the mailing lists presented above, a #boost IRC channel on freenode is frequented by Boost developers and users. As usual with IRC channels, one should not necessarily expect that his questions will be answered right away. The channel is not strictly moderated.