[python-advocacy] Would You Write Python Articles or Screencasts for Money?

[Steve Holden]

Jeff Rush wrote:
> There is discussion by the Python Software Foundation of offering cash
> bounties or perhaps periodic awards to the "best of" for magazine articles,
> video/screencast clips and such.
> 
> If YOU would be swayed to get involved in producing content in exchange for
> cash, please speak up on the advocacy mailing list and also drop an email to
> Steve Holden <steve at holdenweb.com>, current champion of this idea and looking
> for encouragement.  Ideas on how to evaluate contributions, how frequently to
> do this and critical thresholds of cash amounts necessary to induce YOUR
> participation are wanted.
> 
Thanks for posting this, Jeff. I have already had a couple of replies. 
Allow me to expand on my current thinking before this gets off-track.

Lest people be lulled into thinking that the PSF is going into the 
"articles for cash" business, let me say that isn't really the idea. I 
don't really think we will necessarily improve the quality of 
information about Python simply by throwing cash incentives at authors, 
and I was more looking for a way to reward authors of excellence, as 
judged by some subset of the Python community - this might have to be 
the PSF membership given the impracticality of running a meaningful poll 
with a larger set of voters.

So the intention is not so much to encourage people who wouldn't 
otherwise write to start writing (desirable though this outcome might 
be, I don't think cash incentives are the right way to achieve it) but 
rather to reward *excellence* in Python writing and underline the fact 
that standards are important.

There are many other possibilities too. What about an award for "most 
helpful responses on c.l.py" over some period? I think one of the 
reasons people find Python so useful is its helpful community, and it 
would be nice to see the tireless fielders of questions rewarded for 
their community contribution.

However, these are only my ideas and I am open to any and all 
suggestions from the broader Python community about how awards might be 
used to provide incentives to improve the available information about 
Python, and possibly even the software that's available in Python. I 
have undertaken to make a proposal to the PSF Board for an incentive 
scheme. So please let me have your ideas.

regards
  Steve
-- 
Steve Holden       +1 571 484 6266   +1 800 494 3119
Holden Web LLC/Ltd          http://www.holdenweb.com
Skype: holdenweb     http://del.icio.us/steve.holden
Recent Ramblings       http://holdenweb.blogspot.com