Guidelines for internals proposals and documentation

Here are some guidelines for the design process for internals-level docs.

1) The damn things will be called PDD, or Perl Design Documents. Calling 
them RFCs was getting confusing for those of us dealing with IETF RFCs, 
especially as we're edging in towards the active RFC range.

2) We start counting from 2. (RFCs 0 and 1 are reserved, in case anyone 
beats me to them)

3) The format of the previous RFCs will be followed. The implementation 
section is optional, though strongly encouraged where appropriate. The 
status field is mandatory--PDDs submitted without one get a status of 
"Informational".

4) The PDDs are real documentation. When one goes to status:Standard, it 
*will* describe reality. If, when reality materializes, it doesn't then it 
needs to be updated. Someone should, for example, be able to take the PDD 
on vtables and write their own perl datatype without needing to refer to 
the source.

5) The stauses for PDDs are:

proposed: Someone's putting forth a concrete proposal
developing: The PDD is in active development and considered a real part of 
perl 6.
standard: The PDD's done. (Well, for now at least)
superceded: The PDD's been replaced by another.
informational: The PDD is merely informational, and not a standard
experimental: The PDD describes an experimental thing, and isn't a standard.

6) Only a WG chair, pumpking, or one of the principals (i.e. Me, Nat, or 
Larry, or our replacements) can mark a PDD as developing, standard, or 
superceded.

7) These are *not* brainstorming documents! These are solid, concrete 
proposals for either the design or implementation of perl 6. If you have a 
brainstorm but don't currently have the skillset (or requisite brain 
damage... :) to make a concrete proposal, get in touch with either the 
correct WG chair or Nat or me, and we'll do our best to hook you up with 
someone in a position to make your ideas concrete.

					Dan

--------------------------------------"it's like this"-------------------
Dan Sugalski                          even samurai
[email protected]                         have teddy bears and even
                                      teddy bears get drunk