SethKinast
[Tue Jul 5 2005] [00:30:30] <arcanistherogue> your alot more helpful then my elitist linux friend [Tue Jul 5 2005] [00:30:38] <arcanistherogue> he just laughs at all my problems ;_; [Tue Jul 5 2005] [00:30:56] <seth_k> that's what the spirit of Ubuntu is all about [Tue Jul 5 2005] [00:30:57] <seth_k> helping people
Contact Info
E-mail: seth@sethkinast.com
Web: [http://sethkinast.com sethkinast.com]
AIM: Seth Kinast
IRC: seth_k
PGP: [http://sethkinast.com/about/pgp/ My PGP Public Key]
Contributions
Active member of [http://ubuntuforums.org Ubuntu Community Forums] and on #kubuntu and #ubuntu. I spend approximately 10-12 hours a week providing support on both the forums and via IRC.
Ubuntu evangelist at [http://support.invisionfree.com InvisionFree]; I have converted nearly a dozen users from Windows to Ubuntu!
- Backported multiple packages for Hoary, most have been accepted into the backports repository
- Contributed bug reports as and when found through normal daily use of Ubuntu Breezy
Work
I have various skills and activities that I feel can contribute to the growth of Ubuntu:
- Programmer in Java, PHP, and C++; extremely proficient in XHTML 1.0-1.1 and CSS2.
Active member of [http://ubuntuforums.org Ubuntu Community Forums] and on #kubuntu and #ubuntu. I spend approximately 10-12 hours a week providing support on both the forums and via IRC.
Ubuntu evangelist at [http://support.invisionfree.com InvisionFree]; I have converted nearly a dozen users from Windows to Ubuntu!
About Me
I am a senior at the [http://ou.edu University of Oklahoma], majoring in microbiology (pre-med emphasis) and pursuing a double minor in French and Computer Science. Computers, programming, and Linux have been among my passions for many years; I operate my own computer repair business and also take on webdesign and programming work from time to time. In my free time I enjoy playing keyboard with my band, working at [http://invisionfree.com InvisionFree] and [http://asmallorange.com A Small Orange] (the latter of which has expanded my Linux server administration skills considerably), and hacking around on Ubuntu.
Pet Projects
Bugs
[https://bugzilla.ubuntu.com/show_bug.cgi?id=9942 Ndiswrapper with Dell Inspiron 600m]
[https://bugzilla.ubuntu.com/show_bug.cgi?id=10632 Firefox searchplugin issues]
Packages
[http://sethkinast.com/ubuntu/hoary/backports/ My Hoary Backports] (20+)
Accepted into universe for Breezy: [http://sethkinast.com/ubuntu/breezy/zsnes/ zSNES 1.4.2]
I believe that polish, that final 5% of any project, is the most important aspect in winning new users. As such, I would enjoy working in an area where I could work on user-interface issues and massage wrinkles out of ugly GUI implementations.
Having come from using SuSE Linux full-time, I find that the most drastic difference between that distribution and Ubuntu is the real sense of community inspired by using Ubuntu. Rather than being an elite community of hackers, Ubuntu is able to appeal to everyone, thanks to the emphasis on support and community. I have worked for over five years in a technical-support role, and have been able to extend these skills into providing support for the Ubuntu community. As a relatively new Linux user (less than 3 years), I remember having many of the same issues that new Ubuntu users face. Others were able to help me then; I can now return the favor with the knowledge and skills I have acquired. Bugs are fixable, poor user interfaces forgivable. But without a good community to help and support new users, they will never be able to succeed.