MOTU application for Michael Casadevall (NCommander/sonicmctails)

[James Westby]

On Wed, 2008-10-22 at 11:06 -0400, Michael Casadevall wrote:
> As for my individual workflows, I generally use one based off my
> workflow that I developed for backports, which is chiefly confirm the
> original bug if possible, get a package building, get it building in
> pbuilder, installing the debs from pbuilder, check upgrability, check
> usability, attempt to reproduce the original bug after my patch,
> prepare a debdiff or upload as the case maybe. I cite orage as one of
> the more recent packages where I have applied my workflow
> successfully, as well as every single backport I've tested.

I think that's a good workflow, and one that will catch a good number of
mistakes.

I would just state the obvious point that becoming a MOTU means that
you no longer have sponsors, so you have to ask for reviews, rather
than getting them by default.

> I won't say that this list is continually growing, its just I happen
> to expand my fields knowledge more and more. Let me put to you in
> another way, I am mostly active in ports and xubuntu development, this
> are my priorities ATM within the community, providing PowerPC and
> other ports users with a solid and stable Ubuntu distribution, and
> improving the Xubuntu distribution.

I saw you also said you would join the backports team, is that correct?

You still refer to yourself as a Kubuntu developer, and in the last
days you started getting involved with the Mozilla team, and offered
to work on the ports kernel, and the .28 kernel I believe.

To me it looks like it is growing, but I don't know which you have
moved on from, and which are going to be working on in the next
cycle.

>  That being said, I don't feel
> specialization in one any section of Ubuntu is good for the project;
> what good is someone who can solve FTBFSs if they remain only in the
> Xubuntu section of the repo. In the time I've been here, I've been
> involved in Xubuntu, Kubuntu, Studio, Server, Ports, LPIA kernel
> hacking, the Mozilla team, and probably other parts of the project
> that I can't think off hand.

I think specialisation is good, but I also think breath of interest is
good, and is a trait that I share.

My concern is not with you helping out with many parts of the project,
that is great. My concern is that when someone is doing a job it
usually gets left to that person. If they then move on then it can
leave a void. One part of the CoC is to step down gracefully, and
while I am not asking you to step down from any of your work, I
would remind you of that and ask you to remember it if you find
yourself overloaded, or your situation changes such that you are
able to spend less time on Ubuntu.

You have been through most of these tasks only once, and I wonder
whether they will start to clash as you go through a second cycle.
It's just a case of having too much to do at once, which obviously
happens to us all from time to time. Do you think you will be able
to judge what workload you will be able to handle, and pass on any
extra work as needed?

> I think in some ways this has already happened, w.r.t to FTBFSes and
> libtool issues. I've already been asked to look at several packages
> when the explode in a shower of sparks, and I've earned a reputation
> as the goto guy for difficult build failures. I've been involved in
> Xubuntu development fairly early in my contributing career, and I have
> remained involved through out. As stated above, I generally don't see
> it as taking New Projects, but more expanding my field of knowledge,
> and providing assistance where needed. I generally go where I'm most
> needed, so if a new project greatly needs my abilities, it would get
> my focus, but I would not simply abandon my old projects on a whim.

I'm interested that you don't see it as taking on new projects. Do
you see yourself as more as picking up things that need doing,
rather than taking on an area and ensuring it improves from
release to release, like your position as Debian-Xubuntu collaboration
lead?

On a different topic, I have seen you working strange hours, is this
due to your job?

Thanks,

James