Andrea Veri

Today we are interviewing Andrea Veri, fresh MOTU and eager Ubuntu volunteer.

Age: 18
Location: Udine, Italy
IRC Nick: bluekuja

How long have you used Linux and what was your first distro?
I started using Linux at the end of 2005 using Red Hat and Fedora distros, contributing on writing several pages for Fedora documentation (mostly server docs) but mainly working on some packaging-related activities (introducing ctorrent, gtorrent-viewer and v2strip packages inside Fedora) for more than 3 months until the beginning of March 2006 when I decided to move definitely to Ubuntu after discovering it at a friend’s party. Was love at first sight that made me leaving every Fedora plan and project creating my first personal wiki page on wiki.ubuntu.com some days later.

How long have you been using Ubuntu?
In fact, I started using Ubuntu at the beginning of 2006, firstly getting involved inside the Edubuntu family making real the possibility to have an Edubuntu Italian support and website area inside the current Italian LoCo Team.

When did you get involved with the MOTU team and how?
Right after joining the Ubuntu brigade I started checking out MOTU documentation, mainly packaging guide plus debian new maintainer’s guide, trying to understand every single new word and applying directly to a source package every lesson learned during developer’s world “travel”. After getting introduced and fascinated from an active community, I had to left the project for a while for some small problems, restarting everything on May 2007 with my first sponsored upload inside the archive. My packaging passion increased right after meeting Alexander Sack inside #ubuntu-mozillateam irc channel some days later, deciding to work directly with him as my mentor for both Debian and Ubuntu distributions.

What helped you learning packaging and learning how the Ubuntu teams work?
I started with Debian New Maintainer’s guide and Ubuntu’s packaging guide moving then to package my first applications learning from already-packaged software and asking if needed to Alexander improving and learning every time from him or from other developers a new Ubuntu Team lesson.

Favorite part of working with MOTU?
Introducing a fix making tons of users happy is one of the best things I appreciate of being a MOTU. Mentoring, sponsoring, helping out new contributors or students is something special as well.

Any advice for people wanting to help with MOTU?
I always suggest to start with a package a new contributor cares about personally, that’s useful to improve/fix the package itself during its maintenance.
Reading MOTU and Debian documentation is a great starting point as well to avoid any strange question on our MOTU irc channel.

What packages/areas of Universe are you most interested in?
I’m currently working on a vast area of packages, but I’ll try to focus on p2p (Peer-2-Peer) applications both for Universe and Main. I planned to create a MOTU-p2p team really soon including it inside the existing motu-torrent team, but it will take some months to organize everything up; contributors (testers/packagers) are currently missing.

Any Plans for Hardy Heron?
I’ll keep working on a large number of packages but as I said before I would like to focus on having an updated situation of p2p applications, introducing libtorrent-rasterbar and its related clients like btg or linkage. Creating a working team with interested contributors and developers will be the first step to work on.

Favorite quote?

“As for me, all I know is that I know nothing.” — Socrates

What do you do in your other spare time?
I love going around with my motorbike, listening good music, playing basketball and meeting up with friends around the city centre.

Pic of you, your work area, and/or your screen?

Travis Watkins

 Travis Watkins recently became a MOTU after a long time in the Ubuntu community. He is best known for Alacarte, the Gnome menu editor. He also wrote a Bayesian content filter called willow-ng for Edubuntu and more recently has been working on 3D desktop with the Compiz community.

Age: 20
Location: Iowa, USA
IRC Nick: Amaranth

How long have you used Linux and what was your first distro?
I started with Debian in 2003.

How long have you been using Ubuntu?
Since the very first release so around the end of October or start of November in 2004.

When did you get involved with the MOTU team and how?
I had created alacarte, my menu editor, and needed a package for it. This was probably around April or so in 2005.

What helped you learning packaging and learning how the Ubuntu teams work?
I started with the Debian New Maintainer’s Guide and then started looking at existing packages that were similar to what I was trying to do. I mostly learned how things worked in Ubuntu by watching what everyone else was doing.

Favorite part of working with MOTU?
Knowing people are having a better Ubuntu experience because of work I’ve done.

Any advice for people wanting to help with MOTU?
Start with a package you care about personally, that way you’ll learn all the tricks and techniques needed to make it the best it can be because it makes your life better too.

How do you see compiz/3D desktop changing Ubuntu and computing in general in the future?
With compiz and related technologies we’re reaching the point where our only limit to what we can do is our imagination. With this new power we can redefine the way you use your desktop for the better.

Any Plans for Hardy Heron?
My main goal is still getting compiz working better but along with that I want to package all the fun blingful things you can use once you have compiz like avant-window-navigator, screenlets, moonlight widgets, etc.

Favorite quote?

“The human race is a race of cowards; and I am not only marching in that procession but carrying a banner.” — Mark Twain

What do you do in your other spare time?
I enjoy walking/jogging and am trying to learn to play guitar.

Pic of you, your work area, and/or your screen?
My ‘work area’ is a reclining chair (laptop ftw) so it’s not very interesting.