Bylaws
PCGen Bylaws
Initially adopted: 02 Nov 2003 Last Amended: 28 September 2009 Version: 8
Article I (Name)
The name of this organization is to be PCGen.
Article II (Purpose)
The purpose of PCGen is to create a character generator for all role-playing games.
Article III (Membership)
Section 1: Membership
Membership to PCGen is open to anyone. Members of PCGen are all volunteers.
Section 2: PCGen Teams
PCGen is composed of numerous sub-teams that make up the whole. These teams are:
- Architecture
- Code
- Content (Data, Documentation and Output Sheets)
- Admin (Tracker, Release and Website)
- Public Relations (Publisher Liaison, Data License and Advertising)
Section 3: Ranking
Each team is composed of one or more people. Each team will have at least one Silverback. The duties of the Silverback(s) are:
- Help recruit and train new members
- If requested, help mediate any team-member related tensions
- Remove inactive members from their group
- Vote in the BoD meetings or nominate a 2nd to vote in their place
Below the Silverbacks, in decreasing status, are the following ranks:
Article IV: Board of Directors
Section 1
PCGen shall be run by a Board of Directors. This board shall be constituted by at least one Silverback from each of the Teams and be chaired by the Chair Monkey. One person can represent more than one team if needed. The size of the Board may vary with time. Duties of the board shall include, but not be limited to:
- Dealing with a tracker that needs clarification/prioritization or syntax that can’t be agreed upon.
- Resolving tension on or between team members.
- When someone has done work above and beyond the call of duty, the BoD needs to be aware of it and acknowledge it publicly.
- Observe any other team in PCGen. If a board member wishes to actively participate in that sub-team, they will need to follow the lead of that team’s Silverback(s).
Section 2
New Silverbacks shall be approved by a simple majority vote of the existing Silverbacks.
Section 3
A list of the current members of the Board shall be available for anyone to see. This list will include what sub-team(s) they are from and a preferred method of contacting them.
Section 4
The PCGen Board of Directors will at all times endeavour to minimise the number of discussions by the Board or their teams on private mailing lists.
Rationale: This is in order to foster an open community where decision making is transparent to all.
Article V: Meetings
Section 1
The Board of Directors shall meet at least once a month. The Chair Monkey shall announce these meetings, and how they are to be carried out, to the Board at least one week in advance. If any items before the Board are to be voted on, a quorum (50% + 1) of the Board shall be present at the meeting. If a quorum does not prevail, then no voting can take place. A log of the Board meetings shall be kept for posterity. The log of the Board meeting shall be provided to the PCGen volunteers so that they may see what is going with the group.
Section 2
The Teams shall meet in a manner most conducive for their work, as guided by their Silverback.
Section 3
In the event that there is no active Silverback or 2nd representing a team, the existing active Chimps of that team will lead by consensus and can collectively vote as a 2nd.
Article VI: Voting
Section 1
Each team shall have one vote. A Silverback has a vote which they can pass on to a 2nd in case of absence.
Section 2
Most items brought before the Board to be voted on will only require a simple (50% + 1) majority to pass. Amending these Bylaws, increasing/decreasing the size of the board and disciplining a volunteer in PCGen shall require a major (2/3) majority. The Chair Monkey will vote in the case of a tie and the Benevolent Dictator has the power of Veto.
Article VII: Releases
The Release 2nd has the special power of veto over releases.
