[Plugtest-org] Looking for volunteers / Programme Committee

[Charles-H. Schulz]

Hello everyone,

At the risk of sounding like a party crasher, I would like to raise an
objection about the recent self-nomination of Louis Suarez-Potts. 

Louis is known for many things, especially his track record on the
former OpenOffice.org project and it is clear no one would think to
dispute that to him.

When it comes to ODF and the past year, I would however point out that
there are certain elements that make this self-nomination somewhat
problematic. 

Besides the lack of any implementation, research or experience in users
migration or management, Louis has displayed a concerning lack of
balance when it comes to some of the major ODF implementations (namely,
LibreOffice). Much to my dismay I have received consistent reports that
he's been very active at badmouthing, criticizing the LibreOffice
Project in various circles while attempting to derail the LibreOffice's
ODF master class. 

Gentlemen, we are in the field of Free & Open Standards, ODF to be
accurate. Standardization does not preclude competition among different
solutions based on the same standard, but it calls for tight
cooperation when each of us has set his mind towards growing the
common lot. We know that the adoption of such a standard depends on the
development of a truly diverse ecosystem. The Plugfests are an
indispensable brick towards the growth of this ecosystem, and the last
thing we would want is that the lack of confidence plague our society. 

Granting Louis Suarez-Potts such a position would do just that and
more; it would prejudice one implementation and lessen its standing in
the ecosystem, it would set the dangerous precedent that a man who lost
much in a formidable chain of events he refused to see coming, can
now satisfy his desire for vengeance against the people he considers to
be his foes and will then be free to discriminate one major ODF
implementation in his hell-bent denial of reality. 

Having written the words above I cannot of course nominate myself; it
would be a peculiar case of bad taste, although I claim to have no
issue with impartiality when it comes to ODF adoption. However, I
firmly believe that choosing a balanced sample of implementors and
practitioners (users) is key to have a working committee. I am of
course willing to help if you need someone from the LibreOffice
project. 

Best Regards,

Charles-H. Schulz. 


Le Sun, 18 Sep 2011 23:56:39 -0400,
Louis R Suárez-Potts <luispo at gmail.com> a écrit :

> I'd like to nominate myself, louis suarez-potts. Given that I've
> evidently dedicated my life as it is to this format, ….
> 
> cheers,
> 
> 
> -louis
> 
> 
> 
> On 2011-09-14, at 13:41 , Hanssens Bart wrote:
> 
> > Hi,
> > 
> > In order to facilitate the development of actual programme of
> > future plugfests, it is proposed to formalise the set up a
> > Programme Committee. This Program Committee will take the decisions
> > regarding the contents of the programme, to provide better
> > continuity and take this (significant) burden from the local
> > organisers.
> > 
> > We are looking for a balanced group of volunteers from national
> > groups and suppliers, who can contribute to the practical work  of
> > this committee. In addition, local organisers of a specific
> > plugfest will have a liaison member of this committee during the
> > run up to 'their' plugfest.
> > 
> > We don't plan to have many formal obligations, but people
> > volunteering are expected to act on behalf of the interests of the
> > ODF community and commit the required time for this task (and
> > inform the other members if circumstances prevent you from doing
> > so).
> > 
> > We look forward to your nominations, please send these before
> > Tuesday September 20th 2011, 12:00 UTC. 
> > 
> > We will send around the list of candidates to this list that day.
> > If there are no candidacies challenged within 72 hours, the
> > Programme Committee will be appointed for one year. Upon instalment
> > the committee will select a chair and a secretary.
> > 
> > 
> > Best regards
> > 
> > Bart Hanssens (Fedict), Basil Cousins (OFE), Michiel Leenaars
> > (NLNet) _______________________________________________
> > plugtest-organisers mailing list
> > plugtest-organisers at opendocsociety.org
> > http://lists.opendocsociety.org/mailman/listinfo/plugtest-organisers
> 
> _______________________________________________
> plugtest-organisers mailing list
> plugtest-organisers at opendocsociety.org
> http://lists.opendocsociety.org/mailman/listinfo/plugtest-organisers



-- 
Charles-H. Schulz
Associé / Founding Partner
Ars Aperta.