Lubuntu LTS Requalification: 24.04 Noble Numbat

Wed Jan 17 10:13:01 UTC 2024

Hey Simon!

Your LTS requalification application checks out so I'm fine with
starting a Technical Board vote on this.

My vote is of course +1. Other TB members please vote as well!

Regarding your comments and concerns: I'm sorry you had to go through
these various frustrating situations before end-of-year. I agree: we
all need to communicate more, communicate better. It's certainly
something we need to get better at - especially all the Ubuntu teams
at Canonical. That being said, I don't think this is anything the
technical board can help per-se. With my release team and archive
admin hats on the only thing I can say is that I'll try improving my
throughput regarding reviews this cycle. Around EOY is a very
disruptive time, especially after such a busy year as 2023.

Thank you and the Lubuntu team for all your hard work!

Hoping for the vote to finish soon.

Cheers,

On Wed, 3 Jan 2024 at 04:56, Simon Quigley <simon at tsimonq2.net> wrote:
>
> On behalf of the Lubuntu Team, and in my capacity as Lubuntu Release
> Manager, this is our application for Long-Term Support requalification
> for 24.04 (Noble Numbat).
>
>   * The Lubuntu Team currently has five active developers[1] with upload
> permissions to the Lubuntu packageset. Two of those developers are also
> Ubuntu Core Developers (and one of them is a Debian Developer, who is on
> the Debian Qt/KDE Team). Over several LTS cycles, we have proven that we
> are willing and able to handle Stable Release Updates to `lubuntu`
> packages. Our developers have also committed bug fixes upstream in LXQt,
> Calamares, KDE, Qt, and core Ubuntu tooling so everyone can benefit.
> Several examples include Calamares, our update notifier, and SDDM.
> Therefore, we commit to providing bug fixes for 24.04, until 2027.
>   * Lubuntu has a Members team[2] with *ten* active members. The
> difference between Ubuntu Members and Lubuntu Members are, Lubuntu
> Members are only *active* contributors to Lubuntu, within the last year
> (members have to explicitly renew with the Lubuntu Council, and it is
> simply an activity check). These members provide support via multiple
> avenues[3]. Most notably, in real-time we offer support via IRC, Matrix,
> Discourse[4], and Telegram. The Lubuntu support channels are bridged to
> reach a wider audience. Additionally, many of our members also assist in
> other Ubuntu support avenues such as Matrix, IRC and Ask Ubuntu.
> Therefore, we commit to providing support and a welcoming community for
> 24.04, until 2027.
>   * In addition to developers, our Members also perform QA testing
> throughout not only Lubuntu but all of Ubuntu. Several Lubuntu testers
> are on top on the charts (the current #1 position is held by a (very
> recently former) Lubuntu Member). They catch many bugs in the
> development cycle before they appear in a stable release, following an
> extensive checklist. After the release, our QA testers routinely test to
> ensure stability. Therefore, we commit to testing for 24.04, until 2027.
>   * Our documentation team provides our fantastic manual which is
> frequently referenced not only for Lubuntu but other distributions that
> utilize LXQt. We currently provide the manual for both the current
> stable interim release[5] and the LTS release[6]. We take the user from
> download to installation to using every piece of software installed by
> default. Therefore, we commit to providing documentation for the
> upcoming LTS release for 24.04, until 2027.
>   * Our support lifespan is listed on every download on our downloads[7]
> page and an easy to reference graph is at the bottom of the page.
> Additionally, our support cycle is documented in every release
> announcement posted on our blog[8] and is also linked in every Ubuntu
> release note.
>
> Notes from the Release Manager
> ------------------------------
>
> Lubuntu is the strongest it has been since our transition to LXQt in the
> 18.10 cycle. Besides our technical goals, we aim to set an example by
> training and maintaining impactful and meaningful contributors. As the
> most active flavor team, we take great pride in our work, and aspire to
> do our best, not just for Lubuntu, but for the wider community. We
> recognize the sometimes-controversial technical decisions we make as a
> flavor, and aim to minimize their impact on others, while improving the
> story for our users. We may not agree on certain elements, such as Qt
> being the best UI toolkit, but let me be clear: we are still an Ubuntu
> flavor, and wish to be for a long time to come. We are a part of the
> same family.
>
> For every Thursday through Monday following a release, I specifically
> instruct all Lubuntu Members to take the weekend off, and do something
> they enjoy. Whether it is enjoying a nice meal for the occasion, going
> to a party, reading the book they finally want to read, having a great
> cup of tea, whatever "floats their boat," go do it. I will take care of
> any post-release housekeeping items. It is important to me personally
> that Lubuntu Members are happy, and as a leader, it is my responsibility
> to ensure the Quality of Life within the Lubuntu project stays excellent.
>
> This past holiday season was different. I could sense a lot of tension
> within the team, not because of the actions of another Lubuntu team
> member, but the exclusionary feeling we have recently received from some
> of our friends at Canonical. After the Security Team uploaded apparmor
> right before the break (making many applications including the Plasma
> Desktop and all Qt-based web browser alternatives unusable[9]), the
> Mutter regression (which did not affect us but certainly made an
> impression on us), our discovery of improper defaults shipped by GTK
> 3[10] (which kneecapped our ability to theme GTK applications until we
> caught it; we found this later), and the general inability to get
> anything reviewed from *Ubuntu*'s SRU or NEW queue for over a day at a
> time, I had enough.
>
> The reason this email is so late is because I instructed all Lubuntu
> Members, from December 20th on, to take a break (with the advisement of
> Lubuntu Team Lead and Ubuntu Community Council Member Thomas Ward).
> People who know my leadership style understand that I very rarely put my
> foot down firmly without accepting questions; I am happy to be wrong,
> and am thrilled at the opportunity to accept constructive criticism.
> That being said, I did not want to lose the community we have worked so
> hard to build. I instructed contributors that this is not as hard of an
> ask as the usual six month "take a weekend off," but they should not
> feel pressured to do any significant work over that time.
>
> Thankfully, the team came back after the break. That being said, I would
> be negligent if I did not address the reason as to *why* a break was
> declared. If it isn't obvious by now, I care about my team, and I care
> about both Lubuntu and Ubuntu, quite a bit. *We need to communicate and
> work together better.* The Ubuntu Code of Conduct explicitly affords
> **any** contributor, **regardless** of their employment status, the
> right to carry out **any** part of the work with the Ubuntu name on it.
> I do not plan on invoking the Community Council here, I do not plan on
> being angry at anyone, and I especially do not plan on bikeshedding
> about what *is* or *isn't* actually an issue (especially with the ones I
> just linked). What I'm honestly asking is, please, can we do better
> here? Can we actually *talk* to one another, and remember that
> collaboration is the answer?
>
> Thank you for your time, consideration, and energy on this issue. Much
> of this work is thankless, so let me be the one to say: Thank You,
> Ubuntu Technical Board. We would not be here without you.
>
> [1] https://launchpad.net/~lubuntu-dev/+members#active
>
> [2] https://launchpad.net/~lubuntu-members/+members#active
>
> [3] https://lubuntu.me/links/
>
> [4] https://discourse.lubuntu.me/
>
> [5] https://manual.lubuntu.me/stable/
>
> [6] https://manual.lubuntu.me/lts/
>
> [7] https://lubuntu.me/downloads/
>
> [8] https://lubuntu.me/blog/
>
> [9] https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/apparmor/+bug/2046844
>
> [10] https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/gtk+3.0/+bug/2047705
>
> Warm regards,
> --
> Simon Quigley
> simon at tsimonq2.net
> tsimonq2 on LiberaChat and OFTC
> @tsimonq2:ubuntu.com on Matrix
> 5C7A BEA2 0F86 3045 9CC8
> C8B5 E27F 2CF8 458C 2FA4
> --
> technical-board mailing list
> technical-board at lists.ubuntu.com
> https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/technical-board

--
Łukasz 'sil2100' Zemczak
 Foundations Team
 Tools Squad Engineering Manager
 lukasz.zemczak at canonical.com
 www.canonical.com