Two in race for Debian project leader

Sam Varghese
Thursday, 12 March 2009 05:26

Opinion and Analysis

Claes has been a contributor to Debian since 2003; he became a developer in 2005. He was part of the release teams for Etch and Lenny and is staying on for the next release, Squeeze. A member of the new buildd infrastructure team, he is also a board member of Software in the Public Interest, Debian's main legal and financial umbrella.

McIntyre's main goals are to improve communication within the project and to get teams to work as efficiently as they can.

One thing that bodes well for Debian is that both candidates are media-friendly. McIntyre has never shied away from responding to queries, however awkward they be. Zacchiroli has made an impressive start to fronting up for the media, if his response to me is any indication.

Zacchiroli points out that there are two aspects of the DPL's role; the institutional role (which would be the same for every candidate as this is decided by the Debian constitution) and the individual goals that the DPL decides he wants to pursue.

He says he will push for more gradual and rewarding access paths to Debian (an easier way to become a contributor to the project), diminish strong package ownership when it conflicts with package quality, resolve the problem of vocal minorities by applying a means of reaching rough consensus, and try to support, with money and resources, meetings between contributors.

Zacchiroli also plans to clarify the roles of members in various teams, organise a better website, and bolster the core teams further. He has promised to be more visible as DPL, both in discussions and in driving the agenda, and provide a steady stream of DPL news.