Invitation for the Ubuntu project to join the Linuxaudio.org consortium

Dear Ubuntu developers and contributors,

My name is Ivica Ico Bukvic and I have been lurking on the Ubuntu lists for
some time now. Some may have noted my recent proposal on this list to
contribute to Ubuntu desktop with a new set of desktop sounds. Considering
that I am currently acting as the elected director of the Linuxaudio.org
consortium, I would like to use this opportunity to invite the
representatives who may be in position to make such decisions, as well as
all the developers and contributors to please consider having (k)Ubuntu
become a member-project of the consortium. With this membership, one of the
developers/contributors (or commonly the main author) would be asked to
serve as the project's representative who would stand for its interests and
concerns within the context of the consortium.

But before I go on, please accept my apologies if my invitation due to my
own ignorance may have somehow circumvented the person(s) who may have the
jurisdiction to make such decisions and whom should have been contacted
instead. I've tried e-mailing Mark regarding this idea, but was
unfortunately unable to reach him personally. Hence, it is my hope to use
this list in order to allow for Mark as well as other
developers/maintainers/contributors to voice their concerns, questions,
and/or ideas regarding this particular invitation.

The Linuxaudio.org consortium is designed to promote the use of open-source
audio software whose presence is also on the Linux platform (therefore
cross-platform projects are also welcome to join). The membership currently
is project-based and does not cost anything. In return for their
endorsement, the member projects do get exposure whenever there is an
opportunity to do so (i.e. conferences, expos etc.). In addition, each
project gains a one-member board representation and with it an ability to
cast vote and/or voice their concerns. Active participation in the voting
process is optional, so the projects and its members have an ability to
control the level of their involvement.

The consortium has been in existence for a little bit over a year and during
this relatively short period of time has gained 28 member projects. Some of
them include Ardour, Rosegarden, Csound (John ffitch being the board
member), the recently joined FreeBob project which is currently working on a
soon-to-be-released Linux Firewire audio driver, ALSA, Agnula, Core Sound,
4Front Technologies, Mandriva (formerly known as Mandrake), JACK, JAMin, and
others. Daniel James (UK) formed the consortium at last year's Linux Audio
Conference, becoming its first director. This year he has stepped down and
I've been voted as the next director of the consortium.

Some of the upcoming projects include creation of a foundation and expansion
of membership to end-users as well as institutions and vendors. We will try
to generate enough cash-flow through the sponsorship and possible membership
dues (something that will be an optional thing as the membership will come
in various levels in order to acknowledge the fact that many potential
members who may be interested in joining may also lack financial resources
to be able to sustain a paying membership; so if you do decide to join, you
will not be affected by such changes unless you choose to be). With such
funds we hope to undertake various PR projects as well as issue annual
awards in recognition of:

*projects that have exhibited most progress in the past year
*artists whose works have been generated using solely open-source software
*institutions which have provided most support to the open-source audio
community (software, hardware, services, or via various other resources)

We are also planning to sponsor CD series featuring music made solely
utilizing Linux-based audio software. Finally, we are also considering to
possibly support a bounty-based system where we could try to fund most
urgently sought additions to the current Linux audio scene (this would
likely be a vote-based system).

For more info please visit:

http://www.linuxaudio.org

I am strongly convinced that having the Ubuntu project on the member roster
will greatly accelerate the recognition of this institution and therefore
its outreach. Hence, I would like to urge you to please consider joining the
consortium.

The actual procedure is rather straightforward: the person who is selected
to represent the project should simply e-mail me at ico at linuxaudio.org
expressing your interest to join the consortium on behalf of the project. I
will take care of the rest. Once joined, it is advisable to also subscribe
to the consortium's mailing list (it is currently a very low-traffic list)
in order to keep up-to-date with the latest news and/or changes.

Should you happen to have any additional questions and/or concerns, please
do not hesitate to contact me.

Thank you very much!

Best wishes,

Ivica Ico Bukvic, composer & multimedia sculptor
http://meowing.ccm.uc.edu/~ico/