A straightforward policy for technical projects that need to stay focused on engineering goals.
People from all backgrounds and cultures bring valuable technical skills to projects. This policy helps everyone work together on technical challenges by keeping discussions focused on code, standards, and implementation.
Technical projects work best when conversations stay on-topic. This policy creates clear guidelines so contributors know what kinds of discussions help the project move forward. It's not about limiting people—it's about channelling everyone's energy toward building great technical solutions.
The OpenPhysical Foundation uses this policy as a standards body to maintain focus on technical specifications and implementation details.
Current Version: 2.0.2 (See Changelog)
| Feature | Bounded Contribution Policy | Traditional CoC |
|---|---|---|
| Focus | 🎯 Technical contributions | 👥 Community behaviour |
| Scope | 📋 Project-specific objectives | 🌐 Broad social guidelines |
| Enforcement | ⚡ Clear, technical criteria | 🤔 Subjective interpretation |
| Setup Time | ⏱️ < 5 minutes | ⏰ Hours of customization |
| Maintenance | 🔧 Minimal | 📈 Ongoing community management |
| Primary Benefit | 🚀 Maintained project focus | 🛡️ Safe community space |
This policy helps projects maintain their technical focus while welcoming contributions from everyone. It provides clear guidelines about project scope and helps ensure discussions remain productive and on-topic.
By establishing these boundaries upfront, contributors can focus their valuable time and expertise on advancing the project's technical goals.
- 🎯 Project-Focused: All contributions must directly support technical goals
- ⚖️ Individual Evaluation: Work is assessed based on technical value, not contributor identity
- 🚧 Clear Boundaries: Explicit scope limitations reduce ambiguity and conflict
- 🧘 Neutral Environment: Technical discussions remain separate from other topics
- 🎛️ Maintainer Autonomy: Project leads retain control over the direction of the project and its priorities
Traditional governance models can introduce complexity and scope creep that distracts from technical work. This policy provides:
- ✅ Clear expectations for contributors
- 🤝 Reduced conflicts through explicit boundaries
- ⚡ Simplified moderation decisions
- 🛡️ Protection of technical focus
- 🚀 Straightforward implementation
- 📋 Copy
CODE_OF_CONDUCT.mdto your project - 🔗 Reference it in your README or contributing guidelines
- 🛠️ Use the provided templates for common scenarios
- 🚀 Adoption Flow—Visual guide to implementing the policy
- 📖 Adoption Guide—Step-by-step implementation
- 🛠️ Templates—Ready-to-use templates for different platforms
- 🎨 Customisation Guide—Adapting the policy for your needs
- 🤔 FAQ—Common questions and answers
- 📝 Changelog—Version history and updates
This policy works well for:
- 📚 Open source libraries and tools
- 📐 Technical standards projects
- 🔬 Research and development initiatives
- 🏢 Internal team collaboration frameworks
This policy is available under the MIT Licence, allowing free adoption and modification for any project.
Suggestions for improving this policy are welcome. Please see CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines on proposing changes.