Lubuntu LTS Requalification: 24.04 Noble Numbat

Wed Jan 17 16:04:59 UTC 2024

Hey Simon, Lukasz,

I'm also giving a +1 for Lubuntu-3years-LTS

Cheers,
Sébastien

Le 17/01/2024 à 11:13, Lukasz Zemczak a écrit :
> 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
>