James B. Byrne wrote:
Nonetheless, it is very evident from the heated exchanges on this mailing list that there exists a substantial divergence on which path to take from here. It seems to me insupportable that the past practices of a small coterie of initiates deciding on everything without community input will suffice for the future. If that does become the choice taken then I foresee the community splitting in the future in consequence.
Finally, please drop the word "meritocracy" in future communications. It implies a natural worthiness of those to whom it is applied which is simply not appropriate to these discussions. The proper word in this circumstance is "oligarchy."
I've been reading this and other threads on the subject and feel compelled, though I know I'm straying OT, to add my US$0.02 here.
<vent> IMNSHO, the 'heated exchanges' as you've said here, are the result not of fears that the project will collapse or splinter - that, again in my not-so-humble opinion, is FUD and nothing more - but that those of us who reap the rewards of a rock-solid, stable and secure, 100% upstream compatible OS should simply appreciate the golden goose (no disrespect to the CentOS team here, quite the opposite).
From the typical 'when will version XXXX be out' to 'why don't you do it this way' to 'how dare that IRC op say that to me' are daggers which shouldn't be flung at the folks who freely give their time, effort, brain cells and often funds to make CentOS happen.
I've also had a wealth of experience in volunteer organizations, and I still do volunteer my time to several. The work is hard, the rewards are entirely based in the feeling of satisfaction of having done something which makes the world better. The occasional 'thank you' from the folks being helped through the efforts of my chosen volunteer organization is of far greater value than one can put a price on. Do people sometimes get little napoleon complexes? Of course they do. But when there's a common goal, that is quickly evaporated with humor or, when needed, a stern reminder that we're all giving, not taking. In our little distro's volunteer organization, I am well aware that there are far fewer givers than takers. I, myself, am an admitted taker. I use and appreciate this distro and am amazed by the brain trust and dedication which make up our core developers.
The issue of community involvement is simple. The community is free ( as in beer ) to use the mailing list, the forums and submit for publication to the wiki, any additions or updates they choose to provide. They can share their own repos or communicate with the commonly used 3rd party repos for CentOS for sharing what they've done to add to the community. For the core developers to require a vetting process for inclusion to that circle is entirely appropriate, just as it is entirely appropriate for me, if I choose not to endorse what they're doing, to go upstream or elsewhere (Which I'm not doing...but I am wholly free to do so). I'm cognizant of the pros and cons of using this rebuild of upstream's product and I've chosen to be responsible for systems I administer. Thankfully, the members of this community mailing list have saved my <expletive> many times - without an upstream entitlement. It is *that* level of support that makes for positive community involvement. There are countless professionals on this list, of which I am in the lower tiers of knowledge, who offer freely their experience and help. That those professionals include our core development team, makes this distro *very* special.
I applaud the private attempts to get the project's domain owner in line. I further applaud the team for taking it public when no private channel was sufficient. I think it speaks volumes about the integrity of all those currently involved and makes me even more certain that this distro will continue down a healthy path of being 100% binary compatible with upstream and will remain my OS of choice.
The bottom line is that neither meritocracy nor oligarchy are appropriate terms. A distro is a dictatorship (without forced citizenry). A good distro, like this one, is a benign dictatorship. </vent>
<smirk> Long live the kings </smirk>
-Ray