[ubuntu-us-ut] Airing of grievances (was Meerkat Ditching 'aptitude')

[Rob Oakes]

  Dear Ubuntu Team Members,

I wanted to say thank you for the many thoughtful comments that were 
posted in this (quasi) flame fest.  I've been watching it for the last 
two days and wanted to jump in several times, only to discover that 
someone had already made my points for me.  (And usually, it was more 
eloquent or pithy than I could have managed.)

There is just one point that I wanted to add, though.  (Which I will try 
and do briefly, since I'm supposed to be working on a book text.)

My biggest concern/complaint with Ubuntu is that they've become a 
community unto themselves (ourselves).  There's lots of cool things 
happening from a design perspective, but very little of that is making 
it upstream.  This had lead to duplicate development efforts (Ubuntu 
Unity versus Gnome Shell, for example) in addition to bad blood (Red Hat 
versus Canonical fiasco).

As someone who is mostly a Ubuntite on the fringe, this concerns me.  
Ubuntu has some great plans and is doing a lot of cool stuff, but what 
is the point if it doesn't get incorporated into upstream?  Part of the 
value of open source is that others take your ideas and contribute 
toward them.  This helps to wear off edges and ensure that your work is 
a harmonious part of the larger whole.

As of late, I see many parallels between Ubuntu and Apple (at least in 
their shared culture of design); and that concerns me.  A very long time 
ago, Apple inculcated the belief that their technology is artwork (for a 
really thorough overview of mentality, see "the Macintosh Way" by Guy 
Kawasaki.  If you're willing to put up with his Twitter spam, you can 
even get a free copy).  That culture has lead to Apple's essential 
inability to collaborate with people for the better part of thirty years.

Moreover, the "Technology as Artwork" line is bullshit.  Technology 
isn't art.  Art is specific.  Art is deliberately edgy.  Art has lots of 
rough spots, and is designed to make a statement.  Tell me, what 
statement is a Mac supposed to make?  Or an iPhone?  iPhones and Macs 
are tools which allow me to express myself in the way that I choose.  
(They shouldn't bind me to the bland vision of a billion dollar, 
soulless corporation.)  For that reason, they are more akin to craft, 
which isn't a bad thing.  (See 
http://blog.oak-tree.us/index.php/2009/03/03/of-artists-and-artisans for 
a more nuanced differentiation.)  Most of the greatest "artists" in 
history considered themselves craftsmen, first and foremost.

Unfortunately, Ubuntu has attracted *many* individuals who buy into the 
"technology as art" philosophy (including me, I suppose).  And that 
could be very, very bad.  Especially considering that there were other 
people with an opposed viewpoint that were here first.

For that reason, I'd really like to see the Canonical and the Ubuntu 
community try and get along.  I'd like to see them lobby hard for 
upstream inclusion and rigorously voice their opinions in existing 
forums.  They have a lot to contribute, and it would be a shame if gets 
relegated to an echo chamber due to cultural incompatibility.

(I hope that made sense.  If not, see this blog post: 
http://blog.oak-tree.us/index.php/2010/08/05/opensource-fight.)

Again, thanks for the interesting discussion.

Cheers,

Rob Oakes

PS, I agree.  It's good to air grievances once in a while.  It lets 
leaders and such know where the sore spots can be found.