[kde-community] Evolving KDE office hour

Wed May 6 18:55:35 BST 2015

Hey folks :)

Attached is the log for today's office hour for everyone who couldn't
make it. Thanks to everyone who took the time to join and share their
ideas and ask questions.

Cheers
Lydia

-- 
Lydia Pintscher - http://about.me/lydia.pintscher
KDE e.V. Board of Directors / KDE Community Working Group
http://kde.org - http://open-advice.org
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[19:01:00] <apol> \o
[19:01:12] <Nightrose> hey everyone :)
[19:01:26] <Nightrose> who's here for the office hour?
[19:02:51] <sgclark> hi, me
[19:02:59] <Nightrose> yay! :)
[19:03:26] <valorie> o/
[19:03:30] <tetris4> I am, although am not sure what it is about..=)
[19:03:36] <bshah> ^
[19:03:42] <Nightrose> cool
[19:03:50] <Nightrose> ok so maybe i start with a short intro to Evolving KDE?
[19:03:56] <Nightrose> and then we can go from there?
[19:03:56] <tetris4> I have been looking for ways to get involved into KDE, thought this would be worthy to follow.
[19:04:52] <Nightrose> oh and one thing: is it ok for everyone if we later publish the logs of this office hour for anyone who wasn't able to make it?
[19:05:09] <sgclark> ok with me
[19:05:18] <Nightrose> great
[19:05:23] <bshah> would be actually nice; as I want to leave in sometime..
[19:05:30] <Nightrose> then let's do a short intro to Evolving KDE
[19:06:06] <Nightrose> KDE has changed quite a lot since it started 18 years ago
[19:06:16] <Nightrose> and the world we live in has changed as well
[19:06:55] <Nightrose> and lately KDE as a community has struggled with various things because of this
[19:07:14] <Nightrose> Evolving KDE is now about taking our destiny in our hands basically
[19:07:33] <sgclark> what I thought, wonderful
[19:07:52] <Nightrose> we want to do this by analyzing where we are. describing where we want to go. and then figuring out how to get from where we are to where we want to go
[19:08:07] <Nightrose> we are currently in the first phase of this
[19:08:18] <Nightrose> we're analyzing where we are and where we want to go
[19:08:33] <Nightrose> a big part of that is a survey which you might have seen
[19:08:43] <Nightrose> this is running until the end of this month
[19:08:58] <valorie> this process should help our new executive director hit the ground running
[19:09:02] <Nightrose> and then we'll analyze this and present the results at akademy and publish them for everyone to see
[19:09:08] <Nightrose> valorie: yes!
[19:09:44] <Nightrose> and after that it's up to all of us to figure out how we get from where we are to where we want to go and how everyone can help us get there
[19:10:05] <Nightrose> that's the very rough sketch of what this whole initiative is all about
[19:10:20] <Nightrose> and i am super happy that it already seems to be attracting people
[19:10:24] <Nightrose> and making them think
[19:10:26] <Nightrose> :)
[19:10:36] <sgclark> :)
[19:10:39] <valorie> dialogue is magick!
[19:10:43] <Nightrose> it is! :D
[19:10:59] <Nightrose> and today's office hour is mostly for getting more input, answering questions, hearing what you all think
[19:11:18] <Nightrose> what you'd like to get out of the whole process and so on
[19:11:24] <ovidiu-florin> I missed the beginning, but I'm here as well
[19:11:34] -*- ovidiu-florin is preparing for the Plasma5 / KF5 demo for UOS
[19:11:44] <Nightrose> i consider this whole thing very important for the future of kde
[19:11:53] <Nightrose> so we need to get many people on board
[19:12:01] <Nightrose> to help make this right and make it reality
[19:12:07] <Nightrose> ovidiu-florin: nice!
[19:12:32] <Nightrose> apol: tsdgeos: anything important i forgot?
[19:12:44] <ovidiu-florin> http://summit.ubuntu.com/uos-1505/meeting/22517/plasma-5-demo/ if you want to join in 45 minutes
[19:12:51] <apol> Nightrose: I don't think so, it was very thorough :)
[19:13:04] <tsdgeos> looks good
[19:13:12] <sgclark> Well I think it is a great idea! Scope and direction can only be good for everyone involved in KDE
[19:13:38] <apol> In fact, what would be especially interesting is to know if people have already tried to respond and if there's any questions regarding the questionnaire itself or the process in general
[19:13:50] <valorie> yes, and we often focus on software, and forget the larger issues
[19:14:16] <sgclark> questionaire seemed straight forward to me
[19:14:27] <valorie> apol: I responded to the questionaire, but didn't quite catch the scope somehow
[19:14:37] <ovidiu-florin> A big issue is in my opinion getting user feedback, we also discussed this at the BSP in Munich last year
[19:14:38] <valorie> it did start me thinking though
[19:15:15] <Nightrose> that's good! ;-)
[19:15:37] <Nightrose> we might need to add a bit more explanation text in the future
[19:15:55] <tetris4> here is a question..I wasn't sure if this is for current contributors or everyone to complete..and it is not made obvious
[19:16:18] <Nightrose> anyone
[19:16:19] <valorie> tetris4: imo you are here, so you are contributing
[19:16:33] <tetris4> I would liked for an introductory page on the questionaire, if it was techically possible, to sum up what it is about
[19:16:34] <apol> tetris4: we consider the KDE Community as a whole, regardless of the role
[19:17:04] <Nightrose> one of the questions is what role you have
[19:17:16] <Nightrose> so we are able to split the data between different groups
[19:17:25] <Nightrose> but we definitely want input from users as well for example
[19:17:27] <sgclark> that was hard, I have a few haha
[19:17:36] <valorie> yes
[19:17:38] <Nightrose> ;-)
[19:17:39] <tetris4> Nightrose: yes, but that is not made clear on the 1st page
[19:17:51] <Nightrose> ok yeah
[19:17:57] <Nightrose> something to improve then
[19:18:07] <tetris4> apol: that's great =) am just not actively contributing to some specific project, so I wasn't sure how to handle that at first (I think I went through the pages leaving the blank to see what kind of questions are asked)..
[19:18:09] <Nightrose> sgclark: haha yeah. that's why we ask for main area
[19:18:17] <sgclark> :)
[19:18:31] <Nightrose> lots of people have many hats
[19:18:42] <apol> impossible! :)
[19:18:49] <Nightrose> :P
[19:19:22] <Nightrose> ok here's a question from me:
[19:19:37] <Nightrose> what do you think are the things people mention when asked what's great about kde
[19:20:01] <sgclark> community
[19:20:06] <apol> david faure
[19:20:07] <tetris4> the community, the projects, the implementation?
[19:20:09] <sgclark> super awsome that is
[19:20:19] <ovidiu-florin> the software, the UI
[19:20:26] <valorie> Plasma
[19:20:28] <bshah> community, cookies and hugs
[19:20:30] <bshah> :)
[19:20:42] <valorie> the applications, GSoC
[19:20:45] <sgclark> plasma5 is a hot topic for sure
[19:20:54] <valorie> GCi now too
[19:21:00] <ovidiu-florin> most of the users I've brought to KDE have no idea about joining the community
[19:21:08] <ovidiu-florin> I've talked to them about the community
[19:21:13] <ovidiu-florin> but most of them don't care
[19:21:20] <ovidiu-florin> they just want to use their computer
[19:21:29] <Nightrose> funnily enough software comes up very little so far in the responses
[19:21:30] <ovidiu-florin> :(
[19:21:38] <valorie> yes, I used KDE software for years until I realized that people made that wonderful stuff
[19:21:47] <tetris4> ovidiu-florin: can't win them all, imho what one should aim is put the info out there, and make it easy for those interested to reach you
[19:22:01] <valorie> well, I'm basing my answers on what I hear in IRC
[19:22:07] <tetris4> then be amazing when they contact you =D
[19:22:24] <ovidiu-florin> yes, here's a problem
[19:22:43] <ovidiu-florin> I can do my best to help them, but I have a job, that's not KDE
[19:22:48] <ovidiu-florin> and that makes me sad
[19:23:20] <valorie> I dunno.... that's how free software is developed
[19:23:23] <ovidiu-florin> I'd like to work on KDE software and support full time and not starve to death
[19:23:31] <valorie> partly by people in their spare time
[19:24:18] <sgclark> hmm
[19:24:23] <tetris4> 2 ways to fix this come into my head: bring in more people and improve organization..rules and roles as I used to say in Chakra..but I am not that much aware of KDE internals (yet?) to analyze that further
[19:24:49] <valorie> "bring in more people" is always important
[19:25:17] <tsdgeos> tetris4: fix what? got lost there
[19:25:43] <tetris4> tsdgeos: I was referring to ovidiu-florin mentioning he hasn't got time to help newcomers
[19:26:06] <bshah> about bring in more people..
[19:26:22] <tetris4> mentoring is really important in that regard
[19:26:24] <bshah> I had one idea.. can't say awesome..
[19:27:31] <bshah> I emailed the valorie and Nightrose about it, so basically it involves redesigning SoK program to work for complete year instead of the running it single time in year
[19:28:05] <sgclark> my neverending sok prgect lol
[19:28:18] <sgclark> but it worked with me, so it is a great program
[19:28:39] <bshah> Basically its like whover comes gets served..
[19:29:12] <sgclark> also.. be sure to extend the description for non students.. I had no idea about it being available to someone like me until valorie told me
[19:29:26] <apol> bshah: then you lose the advantage of setting it up as a program, in the end anyone can come to me anythime during the year and ask to help
[19:29:54] <bshah> apol: no; still there wil be some restriction..
[19:30:12] <bshah> like you have to finish it up in specific timeline and likewise..
[19:30:57] <ovidiu-florin> sgclark: I'd like to know more about that
[19:31:09] <sgclark> ?
[19:31:16] <sgclark> sok?
[19:31:48] <ovidiu-florin> I understood that you are a SOK contributor
[19:32:14] <bshah> apol: we are already helping students in IRC/mailing list etc for all year informally.. why not make it more formal?
[19:32:33] <apol> bshah: if that's what it takes...
[19:32:35] <sgclark> right, the new CI system. What do you want to know more about? :)
[19:32:35] <valorie> sorry, my wireless cut out
[19:33:26] <ovidiu-florin> sgclark: is KDE supporting you financially to work on that?
[19:33:32] <sgclark> no
[19:33:34] <bshah> ovidiu-florin: no
[19:33:45] <sgclark> my husband is lol
[19:33:45] <tsdgeos> bshah: keeping it focused to a timeframe helps with publicity, focus, "students" focusing too, etc
[19:34:03] <ovidiu-florin> yeah, I had that plan as well, to let my wife support me...
[19:34:12] <ovidiu-florin> but currently I'm supporting her
[19:34:17] <ovidiu-florin> so...
[19:34:42] <sgclark> well he won't forever, so getting new people is definately a needed flow for free software
[19:35:00] <Nightrose> so then let's make Evolving KDE a success and grow KDE and then find opportunities for people like you ;-)
[19:35:23] <Nightrose> more relevant kde also means more financial interest
[19:35:37] <Nightrose> but we shouldn't look at this with an eye on finances
[19:35:38] <valorie> I do agree there
[19:35:43] <ovidiu-florin> I have an idea on how I can make money and also work on KDE full time
[19:35:43] <Nightrose> but instead focus on making kde kick ass
[19:35:48] <Nightrose> and then the rest will follow
[19:35:59] <ovidiu-florin> I think it's the same business model as RedHat
[19:36:00] <sgclark> agreed
[19:36:28] <ovidiu-florin> I agree as well
[19:36:44] <ovidiu-florin> but I'm trying to find ways to dedicate as much time possible to KDE
[19:36:53] <ovidiu-florin> and also bring in new developers
[19:36:55] <tetris4> the way I see it, if KDE becomes more vital for people/businesses, then it will be much easier to get financial support from them
[19:36:58] <Nightrose> \o/
[19:37:14] <Nightrose> tetris4: yeah
[19:37:17] <Nightrose> for example
[19:38:38] <Nightrose> more questions about the program?
[19:39:17] <valorie> I'm excited to see new energy here, since there is so much bubbling now in the tech world
[19:39:25] <Nightrose> indeed!
[19:39:30] <valorie> some just froth, but cool stuff happening too
[19:39:42] <Nightrose> exactly
[19:39:57] <valorie> and we want to be part of the cool stuff
[19:40:20] <Nightrose> and we are in a position to give people something that is more vital today than ever before: control and the ability to tinker with the technology around them
[19:40:35] <Nightrose> but we need to get our act together to make this reality
[19:40:41] <Nightrose> and we can!
[19:40:59] <apol> on the other hand, we still need to do more than that, evolve is only part of it
[19:40:59] <sgclark> we will!
[19:41:12] <Nightrose> yeah
[19:41:16] <Nightrose> it's the first step
[19:42:02] <Nightrose> as they say: one step at a time and eventually we'll be there ;-)
[19:42:51] <Nightrose> alright people
[19:42:57] <valorie> what's our takeaway here?
[19:42:58] <Nightrose> this was fun
[19:43:17] <valorie> do you want more responses on the questionaire?
[19:43:26] <Nightrose> valorie: takeaway is that things are happening and that we need everyone's help to make Evolving KDE a success
[19:43:32] <apol> valorie: well, definitely
[19:43:38] <Nightrose> more responses would certainly be great
[19:43:44] <Nightrose> especially from core contributors
[19:43:47] <apol> we need as much as possible, especially from people within hte community
[19:43:47] <valorie> cool
[19:44:05] <sgclark> ok
[19:44:26] <Nightrose> the result of the survey needs to represent the overall wishes and ideas and feelings of the community
[19:44:29] <apol> we need to know what excites people, so that we can aim in that direction anyway
[19:44:41] <sgclark> thanks for the meeting, I will spread the questionaire around
[19:44:42] <valorie> probably the url should be in the logs
[19:45:14] <Nightrose> now it is: http://survey.kde.org/index.php/survey/index?sid=752944&lang=en
[19:45:14] <Nightrose> ;-)
[19:45:19] <valorie> I have another meeting, so ciao!
[19:45:23] <valorie> great meeting
[19:45:24] <tetris4> Nightrose: I wasn't sure if you asked for an example earlier..I would narrow it down to the product being lovable (enjoy using it) and necessary (need to use it, from a technical perspective)..both of these can drive companies and individuals to contribute financially
[19:45:28] <Nightrose> thanks so much everyone for coming
[19:45:39] <Nightrose> tetris4: *nod*
[19:45:55] <tetris4> it was fun interacting with everyone, glad to have joined =)
[19:46:01] <Nightrose> \o/
[19:46:28] <Nightrose> i'll post the logs to the community mailing list
[19:46:37] <apol> thanks!
[19:46:42] <Nightrose> have a good evening or whatever it is in your part of the planet :)