[seqfan] Proposal for the overhaul of Sequence of the Day

[Alonso Del Arte]

As I've thought more about it, I think my original proposal for Sequence of
the Day was too loose and freewheeling. But at the same time I still want to
avoid an overly complicated bureaucracy. I think the best way to accomplish
this is to use a mechanism that closely mirrors a procedure we have all
become familiar with: that of reviewing and approving sequences in the first
place. The new proposal (described below) I hope won't be a burden at all to
the Associate Editors, which are numerous enough to have a different one of
them review an upcoming Sequence of the Day each day, and only a small
burden to the Editors in Chief.

1. Any OEIS contributor can enter a draft for a Sequence of the Day at least
3 months in advance in a template page to be named in a consistent format.
2. Any OEIS Associate Editor can review or reject a draft at least 2 months
in advance. If the draft is reviewed, the Associate Editor semi-protects the
page.
3. Any OEIS Editor in Chief can approve or reject a reviewed draft at least
a month in advance. If the draft is approved, the Editor in Chief fully
protects the page.
4. On the appropriate day, at 00:00, a bot changes the Sequence of the Day
accordingly (hence the need for a consistent naming format).

My proposed starting date is July 1, 2011. I'm thinking each day an
Associate Editor can review one upcoming Sequence of the Day, starting May
1; and an Editor in Chief can approve one each day starting June 1—we'll
figure out how to deal with 30ths and 31sts easily enough. (Charles thinks
step 3 may be unnecessary, my concern with it is that it may be too much of
a burden to EiCs). I don't know about page protection (it may be
unnecessary, too) nor do I know how to write a bot, but I figure it
shouldn't be too different from writing a program that does something
similar in C++ or Pascal.

Of course the problem remains that this system still needs more than a
couple of people to become involved to actually work. I hope that the longer
lead time makes it more attractive. Also, I've been copying some past
Sequence of the Day write-ups for use this year.

If we all agree on this new system, anyone who cares to can still put in a
Sequence of the Day on the spur of the moment up to June 30.

Let me know what y'all think.

Al