Re: [Ghm-discuss] GNU @ FOSDEM 2015

[beuc]

Hi,

Given the amount of reaction, let's continue that way and attempt to
secure a couple talks in the distro room :)

- Sylvain

On Wed, Sep 10, 2014 at 09:36:11PM +0200, Alex Sassmannshausen wrote:
> Hi Sylvain,
> 
> address@hidden writes:
> 
> > Last year there was one devroom for all distros:
> > https://archive.fosdem.org/2014/schedule/track/distributions/
> > (and there was a Guix talk already)
> >
> > Is the goal to get a full devroom?  Debian or Fedora didn't get one,
> > so I doubt we can get one through the distro axis.
> 
> That's a good point, and well made :-)
> 
> Yeah, the hope was to get a devroom for a day. But I guess that's quite
> unlikely in light of this.
> 
> I guess we can still give it a go unless someone has a better idea? If
> not, we'll simply end up with a talk or two I guess?
> 
> Best wishes,
> 
> Alex
> 
> >
> > - Sylvain
> >
> > On Wed, Sep 10, 2014 at 08:32:05AM +0200, Alex Sassmannshausen wrote:
> >> Hello,
> >> 
> >> Like last year, we decided to apply for a devroom at FOSDEM in Brussels
> >> in February.
> >> 
> >> Last year we were not selected to organize a devroom in the end. The
> >> original feedback we received from the organizers suggested they were
> >> worried the format of the room might not be technical enough, as it was
> >> built around GNU as an organization, philosophy and a practical project
> >> around software.
> >> 
> >> This year our application hence is built around a specific technical
> >> project: a GNU distribution built around Guix and software components
> >> that are parts of it.
> >> 
> >> The deadline for the submission of devroom proposals is 15 September, so
> >> I thought I'd share our current proposal on this list for the next few
> >> days before submitting it.
> >> 
> >> Feel free to comment if so inclined :-)
> >> 
> >> Best wishes,
> >> 
> >> Alex
> >> 
> >
> >> * Devroom name.
> >> 
> >>   GNU Guix — growing the GNU distribution.
> >> 
> >> * Devroom description:
> >> 
> >>   GNU Guix is the foundation for the reference GNU distribution.
> >> 
> >>   Guix is a functional package manager based on Nix, written in GNU
> >>   Guile. Development started just 2 years ago, and it has now reached
> >>   a critical juncture: hitherto it was a symbiotic package manager
> >>   installed alongside other package managers within distributions. Now
> >>   it's also becoming a distribution in its own right.
> >> 
> >>   Goals of the distro (the niche in the "distro market"):
> >>   - transparent, transactional, per-user package-management
> >>   - declarative system configuration;
> >>   - extensibility from the ground up (where possible core distro
> >>     functionality is provided through Guile programs, a language
> >>     specifically designed to be hackable and extensible — for example,
> >>     at present the init system is provided by dmd, which is written in
> >>     Guile);
> >>   - secure: builds are performed in isolated environments to
> >>     facilitate reproducibility, and can be checked independently by
> >>     end-users;
> >>   - blurring of lines between developers, distribution maintainers and
> >>     end-users:
> >>     + high level DSL for describing packages makes packaging easy to
> >>       understand for developers and end-users alike, reducing barriers
> >>       to distro maintenance contribution;
> >>     + support for concurrent system configurations within different
> >>       'profiles' allows for on-the-fly system reconfigurations to help
> >>       bug-tracking and development.
> >> 
> >>   The devroom will provide the following content:
> >> 
> >>   - high level overview of & tutorial on the distribution;
> >>   - hacking sessions for packaging software, enhancing the
> >>     distribution (installer, package-management tools, user
> >>     interfaces);
> >>   - discussions & presentations of specific components:
> >>     + Secure networking through gnunet:
> >>       * integration of the GNU Name Service (peer-to-peer, secure DNS
> >>         replacement);
> >>       * choice of defaults that help users remain in control (Linux
> >>         TCP stealth patch, GNUnet and Tor services, etc.)
> >>     + Extending the init system: use Guile (DMD) or established systems?
> >>     + Providing kernel hotswapping: supporting hurd development by
> >>       providing it as an alternative to linux-libre.
> >>     + Extensibility from the ground up: grafting Guile into the heart
> >>       of a distro (e.g. GNU Posh, Guix, DMD).
> >>   - open discussions on the further development of Guix and the
> >>     distro.
> >> 
> >>   The purpose of the room is to technically progress the distribution
> >>   through:
> >>   - demonstrations of its viability;
> >>   - debates around its technical composition;
> >>   - a space where hackers can contribute concrete chunks of code.
> >> 
> >> * Related URLs
> >> 
> >>   - GNU Project: http://www.gnu.org
> >>   - GNU Guix: http://www.gnu.org/software/guix
> >> 
> >> * Devroom organisers
> >> 
> >>   - Alex Sassmannshausen (address@hidden):
> >>     co-ordinator and occasional contributor to Guix.
> >>   - Ludovic Courtès (address@hidden): maintainer and core developer of
> >>     Guix.