Re: Questions for the candidates

[Hubert Figuiere <hub figuiere net>]

On 05/29/2009 01:17 PM, Susana Pereira wrote:
>   1. For outgoing board members: what have been the upsides/good things
> from your previous stint at the Board which you would  like to see
> carried forward into this term ?

I was not previously member of the board.

>   2. If you are a new candidate: what specific SMART
> (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMART_(project_management)) goals would
> you like to put for yourself? Or, in other words, how would you like
> to measure yourself and, let others know how you are doing ?


I would say T: time. Getting things done when they should be and/or 
making sure they can be. This include updating the rest of the board or 
members of things in progress, including the various stages.
But seriously, do we need to spend time on that? I think we can have a 
more straightforward way to do things and get then done.

>   3. What part of being a board member do you think will be most
> difficult for you? How do you plan to compensate for that?

To be honest, I have no idea. Maybe everything. I'm a passionate hacker, 
and the board is a non-hacker duty. So that would be a change.

>   4. Do you have any experience on management teams or boards at
> non-profits? If so, can you give an example of a change you affected
> in that role? If not, what makes you think that you will be a good
> board member? What single change do you want to affect during your
> term?

I don't have any experience on management teams or boards at 
non-profits. Gotta have to start somewhere. I think my motivation is 
what will make me a good board member.

>   5. What are the specific areas of the Foundation's focus and strategy
> where you think you can contribute as a change agent ?

Change agent? Looks like one want a revolution. I'm not here for that, 
at least not a quick one. I think that at first, like any of the runner 
for the election that have never been elected, bring in new eyes, new 
ideas as how I can contribute.

>   6. Do you think we need to make the being a member of the Foundation
> feel more valuable, and how do you think we should do that? What would
> you change about the Foundation to make it more useful to members.

First I see foundation members being mostly left out of the decisions. 
One of the things that could be done is to increase their involvement by 
having a foundation-member mailing list, with moderators (just in case) 
and no public archive that would be used to really discuss the matters 
that the members have. This is one idea.

As to be more useful to members, it is harder to say. Beside the 
sponsorship for GUADEC, I see little that the Foundation can do for 
individuals. For corporate members, that's the role of the advisory board.

>   7. Do you have any plans on how can the board help bring the GNOME
> platform and desktop in the top of opensource desktop and mobile
> application development?

The foundation could work more to bring on board more major "industry" 
partners (several of them are already on the advisory board), educating 
and informing.
I have seen companies that seem to (be willing to) use GNOME and Gtk for 
their (mobile) platform, and I had never heard of them before (nor did 
other people that are actually in the field). These are the one that 
should be approached by the Foundation.

>   8. Do you think the GNOME Foundation and the GNOME projects get
> enough representation at events? If not, how would you fix that?

No. How to fix that? Better coordinate with the local members and figure 
out of way to help them. The GNOME Event Box has played a pivotal role 
in representing GNOME on shows and event, and I think it has gone around 
the world several time by now.
To fix that, I'd start by collecting the calendar of the event with real 
data, like attendance, target audience, needs, and start from there.

>   9. What, in your view, are the top 5 requirements (from a strategic
> perspective) for the GNOME communities world-wide ?

Without particular order:

-Presence: represent GNOME at local events (FLOSS or not) As answered in 
question 8, that's a place where the Foundation can and should help. Of 
course this might lead to tough decision due to the limited resources.

-Openness: be open to new contributors, new ideas. It is the 
contributors that make the project alive and kicking.

-Friendliness: make sure there is friendliness. One of the great asset 
of the Free Software in general is that it is founded on communities and 
that even if some compete in some aspect, they still share the same 
goal: going forward. And for that there is friendly cooperation.
And it must be added, friendliness with other FLOSS communities, 
including for the competing desktop.
(I still believe that the Gran Canaria Desktop Summit, GUADEC joint with 
aKademy is a great idea as to would help foster a collaboration on the 
foundations of Free Desktops)

-Proximity: be close geographically to the people. That mean more local 
groups with more local events (a group can be single person).

-Access: make sure GNOME is translated at 150% :-) This can only be 
leveraged with the local communities. There is already a great deal of 
efforts done in that area, including translations made in language that 
even the major "other" vendor don't care about. Show the strengths of 
FLOSS and do better.




Hub