Changing the Code

Perhaps the easiest way to outline how we see code being developed is to describe the tasks which would be assigned to various jobs:

• SNOMAN Coordinator: We feel that there must be one individual in overall control of the SNOMAN source. The SNOMAN coordinator is the only person who can place a routine in the new release of the code. All new versions of routines will be forwarded to the coordinator by the routine's contact (see below), the coordinator will then see that any incompatibilities between different routines are reconciled. For this reason the coordinator must be familiar with the entire SNOMAN source. If the changes to the routine are large enough the coordinator will refer it to the routine's referee for verification. The coordinator will also be the lucky person who gets to force people to keep the documentation current by not including routines in the current release which have not been documented.

• Contact: Each and every routine has a single individual designated as the contact. This will usually be the routine's author, however when a routine is substantially modified the contact may become the person who made the changes. Anyone is free to tinker with any routine, but if they want their change to be included in the official releases of SNOMAN they must first forward it to the routine's contact. The contact will then make certain that the change is a good one and does not compromise any other aspect of the routine's performance, and then forward it to the coordinator.

• Referee: Each routine also has a referee. Before any new routine is accepted into an official SNOMAN release the contact must pass it to the referee along with a description of how it is supposed to work. The referee then performs any and every test he can think of to verify that the routine works as desired before he signs off on it and sends it to the coordinator. If the referee finds any fault with the routine he instead returns it to the contact for correction. The procedure then repeats until the referee is happy and the routine is sent to the coordinator. This procedure will also be followed (at the discretion of the coordinator) for major changes to routines. To increase familiarity with the code throughout the collaboration we feel that the referee and the contact should always come from different institutions. Note that none of the existing code has passed this test, and it will therefore all have to be refereed (or replaced) before the first release of official SNOMAN code (any volunteers?).

• Software Librarian: Each site has a designated individual who acts as the site librarian. All communications concerning new releases are routed to the site librarian, who then makes whatever changes are necessary to the local version. The site librarian should be someone who is familiar with the local system architecture, not necessarily a SNO physicist.