OSGalaxy

Richard Dale: Reflections on the KDE Commit-Digest

published by dannya on 2008-12-30 23:10:57 in the "KDE General" category

Note: This started out as a comment on one of the Digest stories on the Dot, but I know not many people will read it there, and thought this blog a more appropriate venue than the Digest introduction section!

With the end of the year approaching, many of us are in a reflective mood, including myself.
So I decided to dust off my blog (for this limited time only!) to address the passionate, emotional and other comments about the state of my publication, the KDE Commit-Digest.

As I wrote in the first Digest after my return:
"For many reasons (like important "real-life" work and including the simple desire for a rest), the Digest has not been published for many weeks now. My plan to get up to date with current commits is to publish the weekly editions as usual on an accelerated schedule, but with no introductory content (as seen in the section above)..."

I decided that these "shorter editions" (actually, they only miss the exclusive introductory content and some extra statistics) to catch up are the best option out of the range of less-than-ideal options. It would have been much easier for me to not spend my last couple of days on these Digests, but I wouldn't do that - an unbroken history of KDE development is important to me (and you'll thank me in 5 years!). But I do wish that my decision, which was clearly explained, was not second-guessed in comments on the subsequent Digests.

I also requested that KDE developers contact me with news of their current development work. I got one email.
All the introduction features you see in every Digest issue are a result of extensive behind-the-scenes chasing by me: only extremely rarely are they "unsolicited" (usually a negative term, but i'd love to receive these kinds of emails!) as a result of an initiative of the stakeholders (aka. developers and contributors) themselves. This is something I have experienced elsewhere, with my battles to produce the quarterly (which due to lack of input seems to be now morphing into a twice-annually) report for the KDE e.V.

I don't know the reasons why we, as a community, are so reluctant to step up and introduce, announce, and celebrate our developments and progress... perhaps it is shyness, modesty, or because it could be seen as an inconvenient and time-consuming "extra" that takes time away from development. But I do know that it is a critical problem for a publication such as the Digest - and very time consuming and energy sucking for me to repeatedly chase after people and juggle the "deadline". This is a significant hidden reason behind many of the delays to the Digest (indeed, I ran out of content at the same time as I took a break), and you can see from my speedy Digest production speed of the last few days just how long this seemingly-small part of the Digest actually requires.

This really needs to change for the long-term sustainability of not only the Digest, but also the KDE project.

Many will say that an effort such as the Commit-Digest is too much for one person, and you are almost certainly correct. It is a satisfying job, but extremely demanding, not just of time, but also of perseverance - take a week off, and you'll soon know about it! But understand that changing the production model to a distributed collective of people would probably take even more of my time purely in organisation!

I will step down when I feel the time is right, and when a system is in place to continue the publication. Naturally, it will probably be me who creates this collaborative system - and that's ok - but i'm busy, and I don't have time at the moment.

Of course, nothing lasts forever: I am aware that I won't be doing the Digest forever. But when it is time for me to step down (which will be both sad, and at the same time, a relief!), I will try my best to leave it in capable hands to continue the work that I have been (and continue to be!) proud of.

With my essay complete, I hope I have explained the current situation, and welcome a discussion in the comments (and I appreciate the small handful of people who contacted me privately by email offering their assistance... i'll make an announcement at the appropriate time somewhere in the future when positions are open!).

On a personal note: though a year is always long enough to contain both ups and downs, 2008 was an amazing year for me overall. Have a great new year everyone!