I’m breaking my two week blog holiday early to bring you a super cool genetic wallpaper video:
As I show in the video, once you have a nice svg (manually edited of course) you can use the script to nudge elements in it. Comment here if you think this is cool.
The affable Jono Bacon has Asked us to note why we got involved in Free Software.
I think for me Free Software embodies the common sense of working for each other in a way where we are honestly aware of how much we really depend on each other’s work. In modern western life it’s too easy to believe that we are all alone and fighting for our little patch of the world.
At least with the work that I do, I serve computer users unwaveringly, sure I have fun, but I want to make a difference to the people that need to use computers in a way that doesn’t detract from their rights.
Part of my strong ethos has brought to me conclude that the part of the Free Software puzzle we do not yet culturally grasp is how non-involved users of Free Software can properly respect the developers they depend on for their software when they are not aware of how or why the software exists.
It’s just as import for users to respect developers as it is for developers to respect user’s needs. Perhaps why I try and focus on direct FOSS economics in an attempt to strengthen that bond.
This weekend we were attending PiCon once again, a wonderfully smaller SciFi and geeky event in the middle of CT near the MA border. I’d like to thank Jonathan Prigot and Penelopy (Pendulum) for personing our desk with me and proving excellent help and support to all that came seeking out Ubuntu.
Here are some Photos:
We didn’t have enough 10.04 disks so we were pushing to get rid of some 9.10s we had left over. Our LoCo isn’t official any more so I don’t know how easy it will be to get more. But it should be simple enough to sort out for our next event, esp since it’s an LTS.
Reaction was very positive, we had people we saw last time who wanted an upgrade, some people who wanted to try it out and lots of questions. The thing that is always interesting to me is how much more geeks need to be convinced of something before they’ll take the plunge. Interestingly I think this points to the responsibility we have in our authoritative positions as keepers of know-how on Ubuntu how e look to non-geeks who maybe trust what we say implicitly.
I guess that’s why we have Martin Guidelines which state to not over-play features and down-play gaps in functionality.
Recently I’ve found myself having to balance more precariously how I approach local community based activities. Say if I’m going to be teaching Free Software use, then should I be putting to one side my obvious and oblique “Ubuntu is easy” agenda and just go with what is already there?
Even if I know that other people are using events to promote other focuses of interest. If I think the event is worthwhile in it’s own right then I think I ort to be involved and help out where I can.
I know I’ve looked more like an Ubuntu only fan but personally it’s much more about getting the best and quickest Free Desktop in front of as many people as possible, whatever that turns out to be. Making sure that users have tools that work and are respectful of their rights as users under the Free Software definition. That is perhaps my agenda, perhaps trying to spread principles is part of it too?
So long as it’s an event to promote Free and Open Source, I can’t see a reason why I shouldn’t be involved if needed. Weather it’s Debian, Fedora or Firefox.
Thoughts?
Mark Shuttleworth is so crazily quotable! Also Bow Ties are cool
Benjamin Humbphry’s posted a funny video of a stand up that complains about the state making laws about not offending people. Leading to no one able to say anything without the risk of offending someone. He wants everyone in the “open source” world to watch it.
This is probably in response to all the email Ben must be still getting about his rather more interesting post on OMG! Ubuntu last week. I say the following knowing that I have myself have a legion of offended people out there in the world:
Ah well, offending random people is ok I guess, better if you never have to talk to them again. But trying to work with people you’ve offended afterwards when your reputation isn’t so healthy is a bit hard.
One personally has to accept the consequences of our publishings. That someone is much less likely to listen to, respect or work with us than they would have been had we not said their mother was ugly. Most people will give us a chance to stop offending them, they give us warnings about how insensitive and inconsiderate what we said was, then it’s up to us to decide if we really care about them and their views.
It could be that our views are right and we’re right to try and debate about important issues of the day in public. But tactful use of language and considerate analogies can go an awful long way in not putting your audience in a mind to hate what we have to say. Even when something contradicts their world view.
An audience is like a set of open patchable brains. Best to use the patching program installed on their system and not try and force the incompatibly formatted one we have installed on ours.
So…
Why do I care about Ben’s blog post? Well perhaps because I’ve been there myself, have the scars and the tattered reputations to prove it and I don’t want to seem like a heartless logician plugging away at my views. I’d rather communicate more considerately. Not something I’ve always been known for, but something I wish everyone to know is a personal goal.
I hope to persuade others to not follow the path unknowingly.
It’s time once again to show off some of the great art being made using Ubuntu and the wonderful tools we have available to us:
Also check out the Cartoon TV show made using ubuntu and blender: Pirates vs. Ninjas vs. Robots vs. Cowboys (in Portuguese)
This is my top 10 for August, if you want to see more of the amazing art being done using Ubuntu, check out the full gallery.
I am in support of the census package that Canonical is trying out. We could do with more public access to the data set the package will create, but that’s not really a policy of the package. That’s a Canonical policy thing.
Having a fully public data set would of course prove beyond doubt about the anonymity of the data being saved.
I wanted to post this to the planet because we rarely get to think about the kernel in the Ubuntu world, and when we do get kernel related posts they’re usually fairly dry and require some background skill to read.
This is a commentary piece.
Getting the community involved in testing
There is not enough testing of RC kernels. Most people who attended thought the level of testing in Linux was bad.
Testing would be much easier if there was the possibility of safely testing a kernel by selecting installed RC kernels on boot in Ubuntu and letting it run through an automated set of regression tests which could automate a potential report for time and regression and then perhaps reset (if possible). Such a test suite could expand the number of users who would be willing and able to test the kernel without background skill in kernel development.
I feel that not enough time has been spent on coding the boring part (tests) and too much emphasis is put on the exciting features development. Of course the rationale is that users will just test out the bugs. But if the user-base is shifting then users won’t be able to carry the burden of testing for all regressions forever.
Increasing invisibility of the Kernel
The kernel ecosystem is concerned with the lack of visibility and the unattractive nature of working on the Linux Kernel. The pressure is to increase the visibility to end users to make the brand glamorous to work with. The licensing of the kernel doesn’t require any sort of attribution upon the distribution of a product using the Linux kernel, it’s not well known that the Linux kernel (with busybox in toe) runs the majority of embeded consumer devices as well as some of the most popular phones but isn’t well known.
Perhaps another problem with the Linux kernel is that it fails to control it’s brand in such a way as to make it clear that you are not working on Linux _unless_ you are working on the kernel project. This is a failure of the project to correctly market itself as a kernel and not a whole operating system stack which seems to be the current problem. The attempt of the kernel project to hijack the branding of the standard distro space has caused a lot of confusion and head scratching.
Ubuntu is not Linux, in the same way that an Ice cream isn’t a waffle cone.
Playing with Branches, New Version?
Does strict release cycles put new developers off from playing with the Linux kernel code base. Perhaps it’s due to the fact that we should be having a play-with branch set which doesn’t need to be versioned as 2.6.7 or 2.6.9 in such a way that it could potentially lead contributors to believe that they are working on code which is the future of a Linux release. Which is not the intent of a highly experimental space. For a play branch it just needs some educational type of person to manage a playground kernel branch specifically for the weird and wacky as well as perhaps educating new users. Perhaps some educational grants could be put towards paying someone to run such a program.
Getting Patches Into Linux
Security is a fairly hard area of kernel development where scrutiny over patches is very high. If there is a developer that is finding it hard to get patches into the Linux Kernel mainline then it’s advisable for the to separate their changes into manageable chunks. From these chunks it’s possible that some chunks would be acceptable and merged in on their own merits, while other chunks/patches would remain in discussion.
For google to get their wait lock Android patches in, they’ve basically got a small team which is trying very hard to upstream the code. Of course the technical solution chosen isn’t quite good enough yet for the kernel team to accept just yet and the solution does need the costly and extensive discussion for the appropriate way forward to be selected. This of course does create a cost barrier to google and the team that works on this functionality has found that it needs to work in non-work hours in order to both fulfil the requirements of releasing a solid Android release and at the same time attempt this much more idealistic technical feat of getting the right solution unto the mainline kernel.
I don’t have any thoughts on this issue, it seems like everyone is one the same page.
