CSTART Project Lifecycle
From CSTART Wiki
The topic of this page is currently the focus of a dedicated work effort by the CSTART community. You should expect to see the page become more complete and detailed in the next month or so. You can help this happen by participating in the relevant discussions on the forum
This document explains the process by which official CSTART projects are created, managed, and eventually finished. This process is still under heavy discussion and development. Please feel free to contribute by sharing your ideas on the forums.
| CSTART Projects |
|---|
| Green Project |
| Yellow Project |
| Red Project |
Contents |
[edit] Project Creation
[edit] Three colour system
[edit] Green projects
A project which has reached 'green' status has been made an official CSTART project. It has its own section on the forums, the treasurer is allowed to give money to it, and efforts are being made to ensure it is carried out.
[edit] Yellow projects
A project at marked 'yellow' is one that is in the design phase. These projects remain yellow projects until enough manpower, experience, and funding is assured. They are intended to become green projects in the future, barring any unforeseen circumstances.
[edit] Red projects
A 'red' project is one that has been suggested but is only just being considered. These projects have not entered the design phase, and there is no guarantee that red projects will move forward.
[edit] Color transition rules
[edit] A proposal from the forums
I think we should create a web app to manage projects (this shouldn't be too hard and I am sure we could find someone who wanted to do it). Basically the web app would let *anybody* suggest a project, by giving it a name and a 250 word or less summary. Obviously there should be a CAPTCHA to prevent spam. All projects created in this way are red projects by default. There should be an RSS feed for new red projects.
Anybody who is a member of CSTART (i.e. who has gone through the formal joining process that we will need to have once we incorporate, which may include paying dues or making a donation) can view all red projects and can give each one a "Yes" vote or "No" vote. A red project becomes yellow as soon as (i) more than some threshold number of users have voted on it and (ii) more than some threshold percentage of those votes have been "Yes". Red projects which do not turn yellow after a certain number of months are expired and do not show up in the listings.
The process of turning from yellow to green is a little more difficult. Basically the bylaws should put a restriction on the maximum number of green projects allowed at any one time (2 or 3). Each time a green project is completed and an empty space appears in the roster of green projects, a big vote is called, that all formal members of CSTART may participate in. Basically, one project from the current list of yellow projects must be chosen to be upgraded to green, and the one which gets the most votes wins.
[edit] Project life phases
[edit] Initial brainstorming
Ideas free for all. Lots of discussion, research, very loose planning, etc.
[edit] Formal definitions
Distillation of material from initial brainstorming into a formal project mission statement, requirements, etc. Setting milestones?
Important question: How do we do this democratically?
[edit] Beginning of Engineering and Management loops
[edit] Engineering Process
Create initial Design Task Tree. Important question: How do we do this democratically?
Begin applying engineering process.
[edit] Project Management
Determine workgroup structure (if project size warrants). Appoint people to positions. Important question: How do we do this democratically?
Begin applying project management process.
[edit] Conclusion
Big final report write up?
