Ubuntu Wiki

Ubuntu Open Week - Welcome to Ubuntu Open Week! - Jono Bacon - Mon, Apr 28, 2008

[16:02] <jono> right, lets begin
[16:02] <jono> firstly.....
[16:03] <jono> WELCOME TO UBUNTU OPEN WEEK!! :)
[16:03] * c00l2sv :)
[16:03] <Toster> Hi :)
[16:03] <jono> For those of you who don't know me, I am Jono Bacon, the Ubuntu Community Manager
[16:03] <popey> eek
[16:04] <jono> I work every day to help ensure the Ubuntu community is a welcoming, enjoyable, fun place to be, in which we do good work and march towards bug #1
[16:04] <jono> I run a team of three of us at Canonical (which includes Daniel Holbach, who is dholbach, and Jorge Castro, who is jcastro) and work with the entire Ubuntu community to help grow and optimise how we all work together
[16:05] <jono> the aim of Ubuntu Open Week is to produce a week of interesting and informative IRC sessions explaining how to get involved in the Ubuntu community
[16:05] <jono> we have a huge range of sessions on offer, given by real leaders in our community
[16:06] <jono> this is an excellent opportunity to learn from the people who are very deeply involved with every aspect of Ubuntu
[16:07] <jono> from development, to documentation, to bugs, to testing, to packaging, to virtualisation, to training and more
[16:07] <jono> and with this Ubuntu Open Week, we have even more diversity in sessions
[16:08] <jono> we have a rocking week ahead of us, thats for sure
[16:08] <jono> I wanted to kick off by firstly explaining how the week works
[16:08] <jono> you can firstly see the schedule for the week at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbuntuOpenWeek
[16:08] <Robert125> hehe I came at the right moment
[16:09] <jono> this shows the range of different sessions going on
[16:09] <jono> all session times are UTC - you can see the current time in your area as UTC by opening a terminal and typing "date -u"
[16:09] <jono> all sessions begin sharp on the time, so we recommend that you get to the session a few minutes early to ensure you are there
[16:11] <jono> all sessions will take place in this room
[16:11] <jono> and each session will have the leader of the session teach the content as a constant stream of IRC messages
[16:12] <jono> if you want to discuss the session, please join #ubuntu-classroom-chat
[16:12] <jono> in there you can discuss the session as it continues
[16:12] <jono> people, stop with the ignore messages
[16:14] <jono> questions are an important part of open week
[16:14] <jono> as a session is going on you are welcome to ask a bunch of questions in #ubuntu-classroom-chat
[16:15] <jono> but start each question with this: "QUESTION:" - and then your question
[16:15] <jono> for example:
[16:15] <jono> QUESTION: Jono, why is your beard so cool?
[16:15] <jono> or maybe:
[16:15] <jono> QUESTION: Is it true that you are so metal, that you eat small cars for breakfast?
[16:16] <jono> most session speakers will then pick out the questions as they go, or have a bunch of questions at the end of the session
[16:17] <jono> if anyone has any problems, or questions, or uncertainties about Ubuntu Open Week - please forward them towards jcastro
[16:17] <jono> he is able to help
[16:17] <jono> now, can everyone give me a big "whooooo!" in #ubuntu-classroom-chat?
[16:17] <jono> :)
[16:18] <jono> hehe, rock and roll :)
[16:18] <jono> ok, I am gonna take a bunch of questions now - Amaranth, hero to all, could you paste them in for me?
[16:19] <Amaranth> <TankEnMate> QUESTION: jono, which session are you most looking forward to attending (apart from your own)?
[16:19] <jono> TankEnMate: there are a range of really good sessions that I think will be great
[16:19] <jono> this includes:
[16:19] <jono> Ubuntu Bugsquad + Triaging Bugs - Pedro Villavicencio
[16:20] <jono> Packaging 101 - Sessions 1 and 2 - Daniel Holbach <--- great for getting started with MOTU
[16:20] <jono> KDE 4 - Richard Johnson
[16:21] <jono> Producing Podcasts in Ubuntu - Alan Pope
[16:21] <jono> The Future of the Ubuntu Desktop - Ted Gould
[16:21] <jono> Make X rock! - Bryce Harrington
[16:21] <jono> Ask Mark - Mark Shuttleworth
[16:21] <jono> and a bunch more
[16:21] <jono> also....while I think about it
[16:21] <Amaranth> All of them! :)
[16:22] <jono> come to my next session on Wednesday at 16.00 UTC - that sessions is a general Q+A about anything in the community - come with your burning questions :)
[16:22] <Amaranth> <Odd-rationale> QUESTION: What measures has the ubuntu community taken to make it as simply as possible for new members to get involved?
[16:23] <jono> Odd-rationale: great question! lots of measures, we are always trying to think of new ways to make the community as simple, open and transparent as possible
[16:23] <jono> in terms of ease of participation we have weeks such as this, as well as Ubuntu Developer Week
[16:23] <jono> there are regular online meetings for a range of teams - for example the MOTU team (who work on packaging) have weekly meetings, Q+A sessions and tutorial sessions
[16:23] <jono> we also like to work with LoCo teams to run localised face to face sessions and more
[16:23] <Hobbsee> jono: fortnightly meetings.
[16:24] <Hobbsee> nto weekly.
[16:24] <jono> Hobbsee: ahhhh oops
[16:24] <jono> we also work to create an open and transparent community - and have the Code of Conduct, the Community Council and various other team councils to help keep things open and friendly
[16:24] <Amaranth> <ligemeget> QUESTION: Will the different sessions end right before the next session begins, or is it more random?
[16:25] <jono> ligemeget: all sessions start on time, but some sessions do finish a little early
[16:25] <Hobbsee> edit: nto == not. Typo, sorry.
[16:25] <Amaranth> <pimanx> QUESTION: Jono, how many people do you expect to join this time Open Week sessions? And in comparison to the last Open Week? (if you have any stats on that)
[16:25] <Amaranth> Not sure about that one.
[16:26] <jono> typically, open week attracts around 300 people to some sessions
[16:26] <jono> some sessions are obviously more populated than others - the Ask Mark session is typically very heavy, with often 500 or more people there
[16:27] <jono> but this is the great thing about Ubuntu Open Week - there is room for everyone :)
[16:27] <Amaranth> <Martian> QUESTION: Do you think that a large part of ubuntu success is due to its community?
[16:27] <jono> Martian: for sure
[16:28] <jono> Ubuntu is a very community focussed distribution - the community openness and processes have been there from the very beginning
[16:28] <jono> this is what attracted me to my current job - I loved and still do love the fact that Ubuntu is so community orientated
[16:29] <jono> but there is always room for improvement, always amazing things that we can do - there is so much excitement and buzz around Ubuntu that the Ubuntu community is an amazing place to be :)
[16:29] <jono> as Ubuntu heads forward and becomes an ubiquitous Operating System, we will never compromise on our community ethos - we will always work to ensure the community is an open, inviting and inspiring place to be
[16:29] <Amaranth> <PAtrik81> QUESTION: What about ubuntu local communities, how you help to this goups. How you solve support (throught local communities?) in other languages than english? Can non-english speaking peoples participate in central ubuntu community (for example bug reporting)?
[16:30] <Amaranth> mybunche asked a similar question but just about asia and africa
[16:30] <jono> PAtrik81: wow, a bunch of questions in there:
[16:30] <jono> PAtrik81: local communities is critical to our mission
[16:31] <jono> we believe that everyone should have access to free software, and it should also be available in their local language and there should be a local community that is part of the wider global community
[16:31] <jono> most of the work here happens with our incredible LoCo Teams project - a project with over 160 groups all over the world to meet and get exciting and stoked up about Ubuntu
[16:32] <jono> these teams help spread the word about Ubuntu and support Ubuntu users in their area
[16:32] <jono> in terms of the participation of non-english speaking contributors - the community is very much orientated around English - we need a fairly consistant language so the entire community can communicate, and that language is English - however, there are many areas that non-English speaking contributors can help, and LoCo teams is a great example
[16:33] <Amaranth> <Toznoshio> QUESTION: Which are the skills in demand so to speak to get involved in the Ubuntu community?
[16:33] <jono> Toznoshio: it depends on what you want to do :) we want to make the community welcoming to a range of skills
[16:33] <jono> so if you like technical subjects such as packaging and development, we have teams such as MOTU to get started with
[16:34] <jono> if you like testing software, finding and investigating bugs - the QA team is a great place to be
[16:34] <jono> if you like writing, the Documentation Team is a great place to help
[16:34] <jono> etc, etc
[16:34] <jono> a core ambition we have is to ensure that *everyone* can help if they have something to offer :)
[16:34] <Amaranth> <Mez> QUESTION: what aspect of the Ubuntu community do you see as the most important?
[16:35] <jono> Mez: great question :)
[16:35] <jono> Mez: openness
[16:35] <jono> community is fundamentally based on trust
[16:35] <jono> people need to ensure that the community leaders and the processes that they develop are in the best interests of the community as a whole
[16:36] <jono> trust is incredibly important to me - I want everyone in this room and in the wider community to be able to trust me
[16:36] <jono> and this ethos needs to be spread widely in the community
[16:36] <jono> we can achieve this open processes, open governance and more
[16:37] <jono> this is why we have the Community Council and other councils such as the MOTU Council, Forums Council and the awesome recently formed LoCo Council
[16:37] <Amaranth> <Wicks> QUESTION: Where can we find a LoCo team and get involved?
[16:37] <jono> Wicks: https://wiki.ubuntu.com/LoCoTeamList :)
[16:38] <Amaranth> <popey> QUESTION: Community, community, community, community community?
[16:38] <Amaranth> (out of questions)
[16:38] <jono> popey: good question
[16:38] <jono> community :)
[16:38] <jono> someone asked how they trust me
[16:38] <jono> let me tend to that
[16:39] <jono> it was Lardarse
[16:39] <Amaranth> Yeah, wanted them to phrase it better
[16:39] <jono> I am not expecting anyone to just intrinsicly trust
[16:39] <jono> me
[16:39] <jono> and I am certainly not expecting people to trust me because I work at Canonical or I have the job title of Ubuntu Community Manager
[16:40] <jono> trust is something that is earned, and I would like people to look at my actions and my work in the community and use that as a basis for trust
[16:40] <jono> I put the interests of the Ubuntu community forward as the utmost importance in my work
[16:40] <jono> and I want the community to feel that I am our there, every day, keeping the interests of the community at the forefront in my mind
[16:41] <jono> and this includes ensuring the community is well prioritised in places such as Canonical
[16:41] <jono> and I want to be 100% clear:
[16:42] <jono> if anyone feels like they don't trust me, or anyone feels like I am doing something wrong, email me, tell me, let me know - jono AT ubuntu DOT com - the door is always open :)
[16:42] <Amaranth> <Odd-rationale> QUESTION: What has ubuntu done that other distros have not that we were able to increase our user base so much in 4 years? What can ubuntu learn from other foss communities? What can others learn from us?
[16:42] <jono> Odd-rationale: ok a few things here:
[16:43] <jono> in terms of what Ubuntu has done, and think we have carved out an ethos and delivered on it - to make free software readily available in a reliable, easy to use form
[16:44] <jono> we have worked to ensure people use Ubuntu and the can say "it just works"
[16:44] <jono> in terms of learning from other communities - there is always lots to learn, and I am regularly in touch with other community leaders to share notes and explore new and different ideas
[16:44] <jono> and also, if you have ideas for how our community should run, do let me know :)
[16:45] <Amaranth> <dinda> QUESTION: Are there any plans for an Ubuntu User Conference focused on Community/Users, not Ubuntu Live which is focused on business?
[16:45] <jono> dinda: I have thought about this in the past - I think it would be an interesting thing to do - there are no fixed plans right now though
[16:46] <jono> let me ask people the question (answer in #ubuntu-classroom-chat):
[16:46] <jono> would you all be interested in a physical conference about the Ubuntu community?
[16:47] <Amaranth> <ubuntued> QUESTION: How do you plan to get Ubuntu to the masses (regular computer users)?
[16:48] <jono> ubuntued: we need to get it to the passes by continuing to make free software easy to use, intuitive and inspiring - and everyone can help here - everyone should actively spread the word - every little helps
[16:49] <Amaranth> <PAtrik81> QUESTION: Can ubuntu community have a say on decisions about movement of ubuntu?
[16:50] <jono> PAtrik81: of course - our community is open - I am always keen to hear your comments and views, and the COmmunity Council is a great place to express views and opinions about proposed processes
[16:50] <Amaranth> <PAtrik81> QUESTION: How interoperable ubuntu community with other communities like kubuntu,xubuntu or communities other non ubuntu like distros?
[16:52] <jono> PAtrik81: very interoperable - at a technical level, each of these distros uses the same core platform - essentially, everything below the GUI - at a community level, each of these distros also uses our CoC, uses our processes (such as Ubuntu Membership), joins the LoCo teams and more
[16:52] <Amaranth> <nixternal> QUESTION: With community membership, what is the status of the Regional Membership Teams? When will these be established (so I can answer questions about it as they are pm'd to me at least 4 times per day)
[16:53] <jono> nixternal: they are pretty much finalised - the CC is just finalising their set-up - I expect them to be in place this week or next week
[16:53] <jono> ok one more question Amaranth
[16:53] <Amaranth> <jimcooncat> QUESTION: Will there be better marketing tools available soon? I'd love to run a 30-minute TV show on our local community channel.
[16:54] <jono> jimcooncat: the marketing team is something I am personally interested in seeing grow - I would love to see you do something such as a local TV show, and get deeply involved in the marketing team
[16:54] <Amaranth> Do we have an event box or something?
[16:54] <jono> if you do do the show, let me know - that would be super cool :)
[16:55] <jono> Amaranth: event boxes are on my TODO list - I want them for Approved LoCo teams
[16:55] <jono> right
[16:55] <jono> thats me done
[16:55] <jono> my next session is on Wednesday at 16.00 UTC where you can bring more questions
[16:55] <jono> everyone, have a fantastic open week! :)