[Monotone-devel] Summit thoughts - and changes?

[Daniel Carosone]

A little discussion on ICB today reminded me of another discussion we
had at the last summit, and of the fact that it's never too soon to
start thinking about ideas and locations for the next. 

At the last summit, we had a chat about what to do for future summits,
and what to do in between to keep up the momentum, because there were
some activities we picked up during the summit that hadn't seen much
work since the previous one.

I thought it might be a good idea to introduce a different kind of
gathering, on a more regular schedule.  The basic idea is to have a
quarterly gathering using online tools or multiple regional centres
connected together using online tools, three out of the four quarters
of the year, and keep the 4th gathering more along the in-person
nature of the summits we've had so far.

Of course, we can and do collaborate online any day of the year.  The
idea for the 3/4 gatherings would be for as many people as possible to
put aside some time (e.g. a nominated weekend) for coordinated hacking
efforts and the kind of real-time face-to-face group discussion that
complements the normal day-to-day chatter and considered long-running
email threads that we need now.

These could be purely online sessions using IRC, just with some
scheduling of dates and perhaps a particular theme for the event
(squashing bugs, polishing docs for a release, or whatever).  They
could make use of some desktop videoconferencing, or they could even
involve using these tools to link together smaller in-person
gatherings where there are clusters of people nearby, so no
long-distance travel is needed.   

Then for the major summit, we would still try to gather as many people
as possible in the one location, picking locations each time that have
some other attractions for those who want to stay longer and make more
of the trip, while still being able to use these same tools to bring
in those who can't travel.  One of the problems with summits so far is
how to successfully involve those who aren't there in person - people
relaying conversations into IRC doesn't work as well as something that
is just passively recording or transmitting from the room.

As for the next major summit, perhaps it is about time we had one in
Australia.  I know, from going the other way too often, that it's a
long trip for many - but we do also have a number of folks in this
region, some of whom haven't been able to make previous trips.  I was
also thinking we could have a two week program; one core week for
hacking, one more focused on social activity and seeing some sights,
especially for those who might want to bring family along for a
vacation.   It could end up being a lot to organise, but it could also
make the difference for a more worthwhile trip.

Discuss. :)

--
Dan.

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