Desktop Proposal

[John Poelstra]

Mike McGrath said the following on 10/12/2009 07:06 AM Pacific Time:
> I put this proposal together based on the various emails I read on this
> list, other lists and some private emails.  The changes listed are
> entirely around having a more usable, stable desktop environment as that
> was the most common view I've observed.

Thanks for taking the time to do this!  I really appreciate the approach 
you've taken.

> It's also worthy of note that all of the solutions suggested do not
> involve me in any way.  So view this proposal either as coming from
> someone who has no idea what they're talking about, or someone who has
> intimate knowledge of Fedora but is not directly on the front lines of
> developing the actual operating system.  You'll notice the
> implementation details are left up to the various teams in charge of such
> a thing.  Questions and comments welcome, actions even more so.
> 
> http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/User:Mmcgrath/Desktop_Proposal
> 

<cut>

> = Mission Change =
> 
> Right now our mission statements, as listed on the overview page are:
> 
> http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Overview#Our_Mission
> 
>     * The Fedora Project always strives to lead, not follow.
>     * The Fedora Project consistently seeks to create, improve, and spread
>       free/libre code and content.
>     * The Fedora Project succeeds through shared action on the part of
>       many people throughout our community.
> 

Technically, the mission statement (singular) which the board decided on
https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Meeting:Board_meeting_2009-03-10

is: "To lead the advancement of free and open source software and 
content as a collaborative community"

> == Problem 1: Too broad ==
> 
> The objectives above are incredibly broad.  It's not even clear that we
> produce a Linux based distribution.  Even though the Fedora Project does
> much more, our biggest feat at this time is the production of the Fedora
> operating system.
> 

"objectives" != "mission"

Mission == https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Overview
Objectives == https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Objectives

hmmm... might make sense to rename those pages! :)

The objectives page *does* talk about creating a distribution.  To my 
knowledge the board has not formally reviewed this page and it should. 
It was part of the original process proposed by Paul in early 2009 when 
the board reworked the mission statement.  I am not satisfied with the 
current state of the Objectives page as I think parts of it contradict 
itself and other parts not so verbose.

Before we tackle the Objectives page, we need to fill in the rest of the 
Overview page, including who our target audience is.

> == Solution 1: Define an additional mission ==
> 
> Adopt a new mission worded in an agreeable way similar to:
> 
>   "Produce a usable, general purpose desktop operating system"
> 
> I feel this fundamental shift on the mission page is required.  Our teams
> all do lots of different and valuable work.  All of these teams are on a
> schedule based around our regular releases of the operating system.  This
> will also give our contributors and leaders the ability to ask themselves:
> 
>   "Does this change/feature/task help produce a usable, general purpose
>    desktop operating system?"
> 
> If the answer to that question is no, perhaps it's worth re-thinking this
> change/feature/task.
> 
> = QA =
> 
> Noticeably absent from this document has been the mention of QA.  This is
> because QA as a team and as a function are undergoing significant changes
> at this time.  It seems inappropriate to comment on a system that is not
> yet in place.
> 

I think it is still worth taking a stab at.  I'm curious how would QA 
fit into your overall proposal.  It might spark some ideas for them or 
confirm plans they already have.

John