Gentoo Archives: gentoo-user

From: Richard Marzan <richardmarzan@×××××××××.net>
To: gentoo-user@l.g.o
Subject: Re: [gentoo-user] Daniel Robbins' come back ?
Date: Sat, 12 Jan 2008 17:05:36
Message-Id: 1200157659.6873.25.camel@localhost
In Reply to: Re: [gentoo-user] Daniel Robbins' come back ? by Dale
1 On Sat, 2008-01-12 at 07:34 -0600, Dale wrote:
2 > Mick wrote:
3 > > On Saturday 12 January 2008, Jil Larner wrote:
4 > >
5 > >> Well, it's like if I am opening my eyes. I never looked at what the
6 > >> foundation was supposed to do. For a couple of years I've been using
7 > >> gentoo, I never get any political announcement, maybe because I didn't
8 > >> look at the right place, or maybe there was no. I mean that except the
9 > >> Gentoo's Philosophy and the Gentoo's Social Contract, I didn't see
10 > >> politic, for my eyes were probably closed.
11 > >> It doesn't mean I didn't enjoyed gentoo, its power, its flexibility, its
12 > >> community. But I certainly missed something. There are so many ways to
13 > >> communicate (lists, IRC, boards, wikis, project pages, etc.) that I must
14 > >> admit I'm sometime lost.
15 > >>
16 > >> Today, I learn we're in trouble. Good. What trouble ? What's happening ?
17 > >> Why through the words of Daniel Robbins, I feel some fear ? I feel he
18 > >> foresees a dead end and offers an opportunity to change before it is too
19 > >> late. Once more, to quote Matrix, "the problem is choice". In Free
20 > >> Software, there are often choices where the community can get involved
21 > >> in and it makes our strength. The problem is, and is not, legal papers.
22 > >> Because, IMO, legal papers are the visible part of an Iceberg. Could
23 > >> someone tell me what *really* is the crisis ? If people did not do what
24 > >> they were supposed to do : what should they have done ?
25 > >>
26 > >> Thanks.
27 > >>
28 > >
29 > > I am equally agnostic of Gentoo management politics, albeit grateful that
30 > > people volunteer their time and effort to keep it going. From the little
31 > > exposure that I have had to it all it seems to me that Alan's views ring
32 > > depressingly true. I read Daniel's blog and cannot disagree with what he
33 > > suggests - it makes common sense that users views and desires should
34 > > determine Gentoo's direction, but I have not read between the lines to see
35 > > how might his proposals lead to directions that I would not readily agree
36 > > with. See this excerpt of his below from OSNews.com in 2002:
37 > >
38 > > "I very much want to find a way to turn the Gentoo Linux project into a
39 > > profitable enterprise. My main motivation in wanting to do this is so I can
40 > > stop living from paycheck to paycheck and focus my professional efforts
41 > > exclusively on Gentoo Linux development. Many of our developers would like to
42 > > do the same thing"
43 > >
44 > > (I am not critising this statement of his; after all I would very much like to
45 > > find myself a sustainable way of being able to do what I like - without
46 > > having to spend the biggest part of my day in my current job.)
47 > >
48 > > Giving a free hand to any single person is not safe in my humble view,
49 > > especially if that person is employed by Microsoft - I will find hard to rest
50 > > assured that there will be no conflict of interest. On the other hand it
51 > > seems that Gentoo desperately needs *mature* leadership, which can fulfill
52 > > some rather significant responsibilities. From what I read the current
53 > > Gentoo administration and management setup does not seem to be able to behave
54 > > with the professionalism required to achieve that. This makes me anxious for
55 > > the future of Gentoo.
56 > >
57 > > Just my 2c's.
58 > >
59 >
60 > I have been using Gentoo for about 4 or 5 years now. I to think Gentoo
61 > has well, lost its way. It seems like a bunch of teenagers is running
62 > it sometimes. They decide something then go back a few steps when they
63 > don't like the results. Proctors come to mind on that. Users seems to
64 > be the last thing on the higher ups mind. That is not good.
65 >
66 > I love my Gentoo but I would like to see someone step up and get some
67 > things done and some decisions made, even those we may never know about.
68 >
69 > I just don't want to see Gentoo fall into the abyss.
70 >
71 > Dale
72 >
73 > :-) :-)
74
75
76
77 Although he works for Microsoft, Daniel is the one who created this
78 project. He has been a developer of several operating systems, including
79 Freebsd. I would, as a user, like for him to come back to the project,
80 if it means gentoo going back to the old way. On the other hand, his
81 major decisions with regard to gentoo should be voted on by the
82 developer/user community. I don't want gentoo to become another SuSE. I
83 don't want him to insidiously harm gentoo with the immunity of acting
84 president. Everything should be done in the open. There should be some
85 sort of constitution which protects gentoo from losing certain
86 principles or ethics. One of which is that it will always be free of
87 charge; at least from the gentoo foundation. He has to be, as acting
88 president, bound to a code of ethics or rules decided by the community.
89 It is clear that he cares for this project. He wants to come back but,
90 is he willing to come back as a leader under our conditions?
91
92 --
93 gentoo-user@l.g.o mailing list

Replies

Subject Author
Re: [gentoo-user] Daniel Robbins' come back ? Renat Golubchyk <ragermany@×××.net>
[gentoo-user] Re: Daniel Robbins' come back ? Michael Schmarck <michael.schmarck@×××××××××××××.de>
Re: [gentoo-user] Daniel Robbins' come back ? "Hemmann
Re: [gentoo-user] Daniel Robbins' come back ? Alan McKinnon <alan.mckinnon@×××××.com>