Ubuntu Wiki

About me

My name is Jim, and I've been using Ubuntu since March of 2006. Although I had some experience with other distributions since the Red Hat 9 days, Ubuntu was the first GNU/Linux distribution that got me "hooked" on Linux.

I studied communication in school, and was a four-year member of my university's speech and debate team, but developed other interests and eventually found work in Human Resources. At my first full-time job I was found to be good at working with computers, and was given responsibility for maintaining the organization's HR database. I now do implementations of HRMS systems for companies with between 100-1000 employees.

Outside of work and social activities, I'm a participating member of the [http://chi.ubuntu-us.org/ Ubuntu-Chicago] loco team, the [http://www.chicagolug.org Chicago GNU/Linux User Group], and am a regular volunteer at [http://www.freegeekchicago.org Free Geek Chicago]. My main Ubuntu-related contributions are currently centered on Xubuntu documentation and the Ubuntu-Chicago loco team, but I have also done considerable work for Xubuntu ISO testing during the Feisty and Gutsy release cycles.

Ubuntu-Specific Contributions

A lot of my contributions don't involve me getting any additional karma points on Launchpad. However, I'm a very active member of the Xubuntu team, and am also very involved with the Chicago Loco Team.

As I mentioned above, my current contributions are focused on the Xubuntu documentation effort. I was recently given permissions to commit changes to the Xubuntu documentation, and have been committing patches on a regular basis. My goal is to make the Xubuntu-Hardy documentation accurate and thorough.

I also make frequent contributions to the Ubuntu-Chicago loco team. I'm presently one of the team administrators on Launchpad, but my present focus within the team is to provide team learning opportunities. I try to balance team learning around both team interests, and new features that are present in Ubuntu. Thus far I've presented about how to use bazaar for both Ubuntu-related and personal projects.

Previously, I made significant contributions to the Xubuntu-testing effort, building up Xubuntu testing from a mostly non-existent group to one that is on-par with the rest of the Community testing teams. Due to the help of many others, I'm glad to say that we had a Xubuntu release for each milestone during the time that I was coordinating testing. I also receive the Xubuntu daily CD health check emails, and follow-up with the uploaders of recent packages to resolve issues that prevent our ISOs from building correctly. (A new job prevents me from having the time to contribute to the formal testing effort.)

Within the Xubuntu community, I've done a good deal of leg-work for Xubuntu developer team, including arranging and facilitating meetings during the Gutsy release, and (on short notice) co-facilitating the [https://wiki.ubuntu.com/MeetingLogs/openweekfeisty/xubuntu Xubuntu session] during the Gutsy-cycle Ubuntu Open Week (My participation starts at about 03:13). I also regularly assist end-users with questions on the #xubuntu irc channel and in the xubuntu-users mailing list.

Team Membership

• Administrator Xubuntu Testers
• Member of Xubuntu Documentation Team
• Member of Xubuntu Users
• Member of ISO Testing Team

• Member of Ubuntu Chicago LoCo Team

• Member of Ubuntu Illinois LoCo Team

Documentation

• Submitted a number of documentation patches during the Gutsy release cycle. Primary contributor during the Hardy release cycle.

• Significantly edited and reorganized all of the [:Testing/Community:ISO testing community] wiki pages for the Gutsy Gibbon release.

• Very frequent contributor to Xubuntu Wiki pages ( [:Xubuntu/Meetings:Meetings], [:Xubuntu/Meetings/Archive:Meeting Archives], [:Xubuntu/ReleaseNotes/FeistyFawn:Feisty Release Notes], & [:Xubuntu/Testing:Xubuntu Testing] ) Note: the Xubuntu Testing pages will be deleted shortly. I've just left them up for now to document my contributions.

• Organized weekly summer documentation-writing sessions amongst Ubuntu-Chicago Loco Team members
• Frequent bug reporter for the Xubuntu Desktop Guide during the 7.04 release cycle

Community & Advocacy

• I'm a regular volunteer/community member of [http://www.freegeekchicago.org Free Geek Chicago]. Free Geek Chicago "helps the needy get nerdy," providing computers, education, internet access and job skills training to under-served communities of Chicago. We use Xubuntu on all computers that we prepare.

• I'm particularly glad that I've gotten members of both the Chicago Linux User Group and Ubuntu-Chicago loco team to volunteer at Free Geek Chicago.

Support & Bug Triage

• Tech support on #xubuntu on irc.freenode.net and the xubuntu-users mailing list.

• Occasional [https://launchpad.net/people/jwcampbell/+karma bug triaging] and [https://launchpad.net/people/jwcampbell/+reportedbugs bug reporting] on launchpad .

Skill Set

Documentation-related skills

• A working knowledge of docbook-xml
• Solid writing and editing skills

Team-building skills

• Well organized, capable of running a decent meeting
• Comfortable speaking with and in front of groups
• Have good Ubuntu karma in the non-Launchpad sense of the word

Other skills

• Data modeling
• Rudimentary (i.e., caveman-like) shell scripting and python skills
• An interest in learning shell-scripting and python so that I can out-script a caveman

Things I'm not skilled at

• Throwing chairs
• Going into outer space on a rocket ship
• Playing sports where the ball moves a lot

Plans & Goals

• Ensure that Xubuntu documentation is accurate and thorough.
• Contribute to upstream Xfce documentation.
• Promote and lead activity within the Chicago Ubuntu Loco team, focusing on both Ubuntu advocacy and loco-team member learning activities.