[Lazarus] Project management

Rich Saunders saunders.richard.p at gmail.com
Wed Feb 29 03:19:58 CET 2012


On 2/28/12 8:52 PM, Juha Manninen wrote:
> 2012/2/29 Rich Saunders <saunders.richard.p at gmail.com
> <mailto:saunders.richard.p at gmail.com>>
>
>     Of course, the core developers would not be expected to do it
>     unless they chose to. I see it as a project management task.
>
>
> Who is the project manager then? I have tried to explain in my mails
> that you guys don't understand the reality here.
> This project does not have a project manager like some commercially
> backed projects have (they have also paid programmers).
> This one has a relatively small group of voluntary developers. The
> "organization" is very flat and flexible.
Everyone understands that part of reality. It has been repeated many times.

However, this is the reality that I'm trying you to understand: You need
better project management! Maybe not a "project manager" but somehow
project management should be be paid more attention than it has been. I
thought you understood that back when you posted "I promise to look
carefully the issues of project management if you have good ideas."

Well, I've just given you several good ideas. All you have responded
with is "we are a small group of volunteer developers! I don't see how
we can do that!" I hear that a lot around here. That and "The volunteer
developers work on what they are interested in. If we do not like
something, we change it. If you want something changed you will have to
do it yourself by submitting a patch. That's just the way it is."

Don't you see that it is just that message that is preventing others
from joining in? If one of the things you need is project management
help, and the SME role, and other stuff that is not core development,
but the only way onto the team is to submit patches, then you will not
get the needed help. Ever. And you will be stuck plodding along as you
have been, with far too few putting in far too much work, wondering why
no one will help more.

Believe me, it is NOT because people do not understand the situation!

I have never heard anyone say "We need to get better organized. Would
someone who is good at managing development efforts please volunteer to
help us out? We'll tell you who we are. We'll tell you what we want to
do on the project and what we would like to get out of it. Perhaps you
could then tell us what else is needed to get to a 1.0 release in a
reasonable time frame." Wouldn't it be lovely if that were to actually
happen?

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