Programming Languages: How Python Is Building A Developer Community Of Millions

Arthur T Knackerbracket has processed the following story:

Ewa Jodlowska, the Python Software Foundation's outgoing executive director, says Python 'will go down in history' - but there is still plenty of work to be done.

The Python Software Foundation (PSF) has been the driving force behind the Python project since 2001. As well as managing the license for the open-source programming language, the non-profit organization is charged with supporting the growth of the Python community - a vast and globe-spanning network comprising upwards of 10.1 million developers, many of whom contribute to the language's ongoing development.

Yet things can take time when you're largely reliant on part-time volunteers to keep things moving forward, particularly when each contributor has their own particular interest in the language and may be trying to pull it in a certain direction accordingly.

[...] "I don't think it's an issue, it just takes a lot longer to do anything because getting community consensus around any kind of direction or change takes a long time. In Python and a lot of open-source communities, decisions don't come top-down: they come from making sure that the community is involved in the discussion."

Community has always been central to the Python programming language. Only a handful of developers work on the core programming language full-time, with much of the contributions to the language coming from an army of volunteers.

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