Forum OpenACS Development: Call for AOLserver Core Team Nominees

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1: Call for AOLserver Core Team Nominees
Posted by Robert Locke on 11/05/02 10:06 AM
I'm sure many of you have seen this, but I thought I should post it here anyways, since it may be in this community's best interest to be represented:

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From: Nathan Folkman (mailto:shmooved@aol.com)
To: mailto:AOLSERVER@LISTSERV.AOL.COM
Sent: Tuesday, November 05, 2002 2:43 AM
Subject: [AOLSERVER] Call for AOLserver Core Team Nominees

We would like to establish an AOLserver core team made up of members from both here at AOL and the Open Source Community. The core team's main responsibility will be to lead the future direction of the AOLserver Open Source project, working to balance the internal requirements here at AOL with the requirements of the community at large.

We've decided to adopt the core team principles currently in use by the Tcl core team - it seems to have worked well for them, and seems to also be a good fit for the AOLserver project. There will probably be a few slight modifications made, but essentially the core team will function as described by the following:

http://www.scriptics.com/cgi-bin/tct/tip/0.html

If you are interested in becoming a member of the AOLserver core team, please send me (mailto:shmooved@aol.com) an email with a brief paragraph or two describing your qualifications, and why you think you would be a good candidate. We will then post the names and descriptions and allow everyone to vote for the top three.

Please let me know if there are any questions. Thanks!

- Nathan

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2: Re: Call for AOLserver Core Team Nominees (response to 1)
Posted by Simon at TCB on 11/05/02 10:17 AM
personally I'd think it was pretty essential to have someone from here involved. I may be wrong but outside of AOL themselves is there a project/community making more use of AOLServer than this one?
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3: Re: Call for AOLserver Core Team Nominees (response to 1)
Posted by Andrew Piskorski on 11/05/02 02:38 PM
This sounds pretty important...  Who wants it?  Roberto?  Dan?
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4: Re: Call for AOLserver Core Team Nominees (response to 1)
Posted by Simon at TCB on 11/05/02 03:09 PM
Ok, I'll post here first rather than chuck my pitch up at AOLServer.

I'm happy/willing/able to do this. So, question is am I suitable?

Why I'm a good choice

  • Demonstrable commitment, effort and initiative (i.e. OpenACS test effort, contributions etc.)
  • Sufficient commercial and development experience
  • Sufficient academic merit
  • Long experience with TCL and AOLServer
  • Professional manager/developer/designer
  • Obvious self-interest as my business depends on AOLServer
  • Not a flag-waver, or evangelist, but more pragmatic

    Why I'm not a good choice

  • Not a developer who 'loves' developing.
  • Not motivated by 'ideological' development issues
  • Already a busy, busy man and getting busier
  • Not as well-qualified/experienced as others here are with AOLServer
  • English. And yes that *is* a real problem. I have never experienced as much of the 'two nations divided by a common language' as I have in this community :o)
  • Not the kind to suffer fools (and I don't mean newbies, I mean people who just try my patience.)
  • Not particulary popular in the community, which might be a significant issue when representing us to the AOLServer community.

    So, there you have. I'd like and will do the job (or at least put myself forward), but I have reservations. Therefore if anyone wishes to object please do so (I won't take it personally), and I'll decide from there.

    Thanks

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    5: Re: Call for AOLserver Core Team Nominees (response to 1)
    Posted by Dan Wickstrom on 11/06/02 01:52 AM
    An excerpt from the tip for forming the tcl core team and a supposed model for forming the aolserver core team:

    "The Tcl Core Team is a small group of people who are making major contributions to the development of the Tcl core and who are highly respected and trusted by the Tcl community. Team members are expected to invest significant amounts of their time to improve the Tcl core."

    Simon, I think it's well recognized that you make a significant contribution in the openacs community, and possibly I'm wrong on this point, but members of the aolserver community probably wouldn't say the same thing.about you with regards to aolserver community. I think it's great that you're willing to volunteer, but the aolserver community would be better served by a core team member who has done significant aolserver development, and more importantly, has the time to invest in improving aolserver. You've stated that you're very busy, so it's not likely that you will have much time to invest in aolserver. For the benefit of openacs, I don't think it's as important that the aolserver core team has an openacs member as it is to have a core team that fit the criteria as spelled out in the excerpt that I've included above.

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    6: Re: Call for AOLserver Core Team Nominees (response to 1)
    Posted by Jun Yamog on 11/06/02 06:43 AM
    DanW,

    Would it still be possible to add more to your responsibilities.  I am unsure of your qualification but it would be great if someone from OpenACS had a good voice in aolserver.  We do depend on aolserver, of course John S work will make us more independent.

    Anyway thanks for hearing me out.  I do understand that we are all volunteers, so if no one volunteers and is qualified I am still happy.  Thanks.

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    7: Re: Call for AOLserver Core Team Nominees (response to 1)
    Posted by carl garland on 11/06/02 09:18 AM
    I think the OpenACS community is gonna win either way. This is a very good sign for a shift away from the AOL team being in complete control of the software to letting the community have a real voice. They seem very sincere in this and most of the AOLserver community that I talk with are very excited. The AOLserver open source community is very in touch with the OpenACS community and patches/ideas/modules that come from OpenACS or elsewhere are going to get much better consideration and treatment I think under the new system.

    I think the members of the community that wish to be on the core team need to:
    • Have very good knowledge of the C code and structure of the codebase
    • Be able to attend or keep up with the AOLserver chats that occur weekly
    • Work on communication from/to the rest of the community about what thoughts are going on and where things are going or need to go
    • Be able to review/ make suggestions on new modules to conform to the new engineering standards for code/docs/testing that are being established now.
    • Most likely be responsible for at least one AOLserver module (their own or an abandonded one)
    • Follow the AOLserver mailing list and contribute when possible
    While I consider myself a pretty active member of the AOLserver community (I was the first and only person to attend the weekly chats, Daniel Stasinski and myself are probably tied for most chats attended, have created a few AOLserver articles, have a given a presentation on AOLserver at NOVALUG, and various other activities) I do not consider myself eligible to be on the core. I don't think that is a bad thing because I have seen the quality of the other members of the community whom I feel much better qualified.

    The real point of this is that while I think there are a few people that might be a good fit for the core group in the OpenACS community, it shouldn't be thought of a as a necessary thing for OpenACS to have representation in the core. Its all good either way IMHO but don't think the OpenACS will miss out if not directly represented.

    - Carl Garland
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    8: Re: Call for AOLserver Core Team Nominees (response to 1)
    Posted by Jamie Rasmussen on 11/06/02 10:27 AM
    I agree with Carl, except for the part about him not being qualified enough.  While it would be great to have an OpenACS user on the core team, it is more important to have people with the knowledge and *time* to do a proper job.  That's not to discourage anyone who wants the job from running though!

    I'd like to make yet another plug for the AOLserver chats that take place every Thursday on AIM.  Last week's had about sixteen people, including the AOL half of the core team.  We discussed the formation of a core team, AOLserver 3.5.1 and 4.0, and the state of documentation.  This week we'll be discussing adding Win32 support back into the core, among other things.  I'd like to get OpenACS's remaining AOLserver issues on the agenda too.  We need your input!

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    9: Re: Call for AOLserver Core Team Nominees (response to 1)
    Posted by Don Baccus on 11/07/02 02:51 AM
    Jamie, with his interest in and work on Win32 support for AOlserver, would be a logical AOLserver core team member who also is a member of the OpenACS community, no?

    Jamie?

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    10: Re: Call for AOLserver Core Team Nominees (response to 9)
    Posted by Jamie Rasmussen on 11/07/02 11:57 AM
    Well, I thought about running just so I could start my campaign speech with, "Who needs Solaris support anyway?" 😊

    Unfortunately, I'm going to have my hands full for the next few months, and I think those months will determine the success or failure of this initiative.  There are also oodles of better qualified people that I'm hoping will step up.

    Come to today's chat!