[Bf-committers] Lack of coordination and communication in Blender development

[Kai Kostack]

Hello folks,

I'm writing on my behalf but also on behalf of the Fracture Modifier developer scorpion81.

We are a bit disappointed about how the redesign process of certain Blender internals evolves. There are a lot of communication channels but obviously they aren't used for core decision making or even for brainstorming. We feel being excluded from those important steps.

It is looming ahead that we may ultimately be faced with a fait accompli, which - in my opinion - cannot be the goal of an open source development venture like Blender. We think it is not to early to criticize this practice for this very reason.

Seeing increasingly frustration building up in dedicated developers who only try to make everything right and make their work fit into the current or future Blender design but get almost to none help on doing so makes me sad.

The Blender development community needs to become more open and more inviting to new developers as it needs them. They are valuable! But they also need support, they need positive reinforcement, they need answers. Help them to make the impossible possible and not the other way around.

I would love to make suggestions on how to immediately improve that situation but I'm not sure what way to go, it's certainly not easy to change old habits. I just know that something has to change.

Maybe a weekly meeting per each module team (or working group, or task force) on whose module is currently being worked on at a central place like IRC would improve communication with new developers, stakeholders etc. - Other suggestions?

Thank you.

-- Kai