The Community Leadership Summit and Think Tank
As some of you will know, I founded the [Community Leadership Summit](https://www.communityleadershipsummit.com/) that takes place in Portland, Oregon every year. The event brings together community leaders, organizers and managers and the projects and organizations that are interested in growing and empowering a strong community. Each year we discuss, debate and continue to refine the art of building an effective and capable community, structured in a set of presentation and attendee-driven unconference sessions.
This year’s event is happening on **18th – 19th July 2014** (the two days before [OSCON](https://oscon.com/)), and is shaping up to be a great event. We have [over 140 people registered already](https://www.communityleadershipsummit.com/attendees/), with a diverse and wide-ranging set of attendees. The event is free to attend, you just need to [register](https://www.communityleadershipsummit.com/register/) first. We hope to see you there!
## The Think Tank Community Leadership Summit
This year I am also excited to announce an additional sister-event to the main Community Leadership Summit at the [Open Source Think Tank](https://www.osthinktank.com/events/open-source-think-tank-spring-2014/event-summary-bafe74fefce34c9a8dcbef90bc8cab20.aspx).
The *Community Leadership Summit* and *Open Source Think Tank* have partnered to create a unique event designed for *executives and managers involved in community management planning and strategic development*. While the normal annual Community Leadership Summit serves practicing community managers and leaders well, this unique event is designed to be very focused on *executives in a strategic leadership position* to understand the value and process of building a community.
I have been wanting to coordinate a strategic leadership event such as this for some time, and the Think Tank is the perfect venue; it brings together executives across a wide range of Open Source organizations, and I will be delivering the Community Leadership Summit track as a key part of the event on the first day.
The event will be in the form of a day of presentations and sessions that cover many of the considerations when building a community management strategy, and these approaches will be exercised in a practical and interactive case study. The conclusions from the event will then feed into the rest of the Think Tank. I am excited to get started and I am confident the event will be tremendously valuable for attendees, particularly in an age when a community management strategy is more and more of a core requirement.
The event takes place on **24th March 2014** in Napa, California. See the [event homepage for more details](https://www.communityleadershipsummit.com/about/thinktank-cls/) – I hope to see you there!
New Bad Voltage Episode and Competition
[Bad Voltage](https://www.badvoltage.org/) Season 1 Episode 8 ‘We Don’t Need Roads’ is [available now](https://www.badvoltage.org/2014/01/30/1×08/).
In this show Jeremy Garcia, Stuart Langridge, Bryan Lunduke, and myself present an hour of talk about leafblowers, dust-resistant paper, fruitflies, and:
* Back to the Future II, the 1989 film, predicted a raft of technology for 2015. With only a year to go, is anything they suggested even close to achieveable?
* We speak to Matthew Garrett, notable Linux kernel hacker and commenter on security, UEFI, and hardware about the NSA in your firmware, why computers are more compelling than fruitflies, and his work at Nebula on providing trust to the cloud
* Guns. As a followup to our previous discussion about 3d-printing of guns, we talk about the issue of whether guns are a good idea, the arguments for and against gun control, and how this differs internationally
* The second half of our predictions for 2014: Bryan and Stuart give theirs
Go and [listen or download](https://www.badvoltage.org/2014/01/30/1×08/) the show now and [share your feedback on the forum](https://community.badvoltage.org/t/1×08-we-dont-need-roads/130).
Today we also launched our first competition, the [Bad Voltage Selfie Competition](https://community.badvoltage.org/t/the-bad-voltage-selfie-competition/134) where you can win a free bundle of O’Reilly books if you are the winner or runner up. To find out more [head over here](https://community.badvoltage.org/t/the-bad-voltage-selfie-competition/134) and join in the fun!
Happy Birthday, Aq
Today (well technically the 30th) [Stuart ‘Aq’ Langridge](https://kryogenix.org/) enters yet another decrepit year on his prolonged marathon of bothering us all. Not long now and he will be fully fossilized. I am not sure what an angry ginger fossil looks like, but I am pretty sure it is hilarious.
I first met Aq in 1999 at the [Linux User Group I formed in Wolverhampton](https://wolveslug.org.uk/). Since then we have been the best of friends. We have weathered changing companies, moving countries, setting up businesses, various relationships, trying to sell houses, and spent approximately a third of our lives trying to outfox each other in debates (of which many of you may have overheard on [Bad Voltage](https://www.badvoltage.org/), [LugRadio](https://lugradio.org/), and [Shot Of Jaq](https://www.kryogenix.org/shotofjaq.html)).
At every step of the way in my life Aq has been there. He has been a friend in the truest sense of the word; he has motivated me, inspired me, told me when I am being an idiot, and kept me focused on the most important things in life. When I moved to California I was really genuinely worried we would drift apart as friends, but I am delighted that we are as close as we have ever been.
As such, I for one am thankful that approximately 125 years ago he was born on this day.
Tonight I expect to [read tweets](https://www.twitter.com/sil) as he celebrates, complaining about terrible music and the overly frothy head on his pint, while hypothesizing on yet another computer to buy that isn’t a Thinkpad. Oh, and liking ridiculous yellow sports cars. And thinking *Fear Of The Dark* is Iron Maiden’s best album. Irrespective, it is a worthy celebration.
Thanks, comrade, for everything. 🙂
On Planet Ubuntu
Recently [Randall did some research](https://randall.executiv.es/pu-more-awesome-conclusion) into what people want to see on Planet Ubuntu. This has been followed up by [Stuart with a set of concerns](https://kryogenix.org/days/2014/01/29/thoughts-on-planet-ubuntu).
I agree with both of them.
I think the gist of Randall’s view is that he would like to encourage more fun, interesting, and diverse Ubuntu-related content. I think Randall wants to see fun stories of LoCo events, interesting Ubuntu work going on, cool Ubuntu apps, details of new features, and more. I agree with Randall here, and would love to see the same.
I think the gist of Stuart’s view is that the personal stories on Planet Ubuntu is a wonderful part of being in a community. Ubuntu is not just about Ubuntu, it is about the stories and the lives of the people who contribute to our community. I agree with Stuart here too.
I think we need a mix. Ideally we want to see interesting posts about people’s contributions to Ubuntu, but also about their non-Ubuntu lives too.
I would like to see Planet Ubuntu stick to its core goal: to be a place where you can look into the lives of Ubuntu members and explore their Ubuntu work as well as their non-Ubuntu thoughts and views.
The problem here is really with Ubuntu membership. Some people are still Ubuntu members who haven’t contributed to Ubuntu for a long time and thus we see lots of non-Ubuntu content, but rarely hear about their contributions. I would recommend we deactivate membership for those who are not actively contributing (active being *significant and sustained* contributions, as per our charter); this will then tighten up which feeds appear on planet and we will get a nice mix of both Ubuntu and person content.
On Accountability
Every so often I see a scenario play out that I find rather disappointing.
It works like this: someone posts a topic to their blog that is critical or controversial. This person can either be a community member, commentator, employee or otherwise; it doesn’t matter who the person is. Then what happens is a series of comments are posted to that blog entry from readers that are critical of the post, thus challenging the author on their views. The author then either deletes the blog entry or disables the comments based on the feedback. In other words, a viewpoint is shared, an invitation for comment is provided, but that invitation is then revoked when the author of the blog post is dissatisfied with the response from their readers.
I have seen this happen countless times over the years and I don’t like this.
I believe we should all be accountable for our words. Our words have the ability to inspire, to entertain, to challenge, but to also hurt. Actions have consequences, and so do words.
As such, when I see someone openly share their thoughts on their blog and invite their readers to provide comments, I see that as a wonderful demonstration of accountability and engagement; debate is a beautiful thing when executed with politeness and respect. To then close that door, seemingly because people disagree with you, is in my mind the equivalent of walking out of a room in the middle of a debate. The excuse when folks are criticized of this behavior is typically “*it is my blog and I can run it how I like*”.
This is true: it *is* your blog, and you *can* run it how you like, but the true measure of a person is not just in what they say, but also in the conversation and discourse that follows.
Now, there are two very important caveats to my view here. Firstly, abusive, threatening, or otherwise offensive content is a perfect candidate for removal and the commentator for banning. We should never tolerate this. Secondly, I can understand the removal of a blog post if there is a legal requirement to do so. In the majority of cases where I have seen posts removed or comments disabled though, it has been for neither of these reasons.
Speaking personally, I have never, ever, switched off comments on my blog posts or deleted posts. Even when the Internet has seemingly come to get me, or when the press pick up on something and are critical, or when I have made a mistake and felt embarrassed at the outcome…I have never switched off comments and never deleted a blog post. This is because I feel I should be and I am accountable for my words.
For me, this is an ethical issue; in the same way I won’t go and re-write or edit a blog post if I get criticism for it (outside of minor grammatical/spelling fixes). My posts are a time-capsule of my thinking at that point in my life. For me to go and edit them would be me re-writing history. A blog is not a regularly updated record of your views (like a book), it is chronological diary of your views and progression as a person. Consequently, my blog is filled with moments from my past that don’t reflect my views, experience, or ideas of today. Some of those posts are even embarrassing. But you know what, those posts stay unchanged, and I am proud that I have never compromised on this accountability.
So with this in mind, I have a simple suggestion for those of you who run blogs: either switch your comments off entirely or always leave them on, but don’t turn them off when you don’t like the reaction from your readers. Polite and respectful debate helps us grow as human beings, helps us evolve our ideas and perspectives, and makes us better people. Let history be our record, not our edited version of history.
Bad Voltage in 2014
In 2013 we kicked off [Bad Voltage](https://www.badvoltage.org/), a fun and irreverent podcast about technology, Open Source, gaming, politics, and anything else we find interesting. The show includes a veritable bounty of presenters including *Stuart Langridge* (LugRadio, Show Of Jaq), *Bryan Lunduke* (Linux Action Show), *Jeremy Garcia* (LinuxQuestions Podcast), and myself (LugRadio, Shot Of Jaq).
We have all podcasted quite a bit before and we know it takes a little while to really get into the groove, but things are really starting to gel in the show. We are all having a blast doing it, and it seems people are enjoying it.
If you haven’t given the show a whirl, I would love to encourage you to [check out our most episode](https://www.badvoltage.org/2014/01/16/1×07/). In it we feature:
* An interview with [Sam Hulick](https://samhulick.com/) who writes music for video games (Mass Effect, Baldur’s Gate) as well as some of the Ubuntu sounds.
* We discuss the [Mars One](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_One) project and whether it absolutely madness or vague possibility.
* We evaluate how Open Source app devs can make money, different approaches, and whether someone could support a family with it.
* Part One of our 2014 predictions. We will review them at the end of the year to see how we did. Be sure to [share your predictions too](community.badvoltage.org/t/2014-predictions-show/108/13)!
Go and [download the show in either MP3 or Ogg format and subscribe to the podcast feeds](https://www.badvoltage.org/2014/01/16/1×07/)!
We also have a [new community forum](community.badvoltage.org/) that is starting to get into its groove too. The forum is based on *Discourse*, so is a pleasure to use, and a really nice community is forming. We would love to welcome you too!
In 2014 we want to grow the show, refine our format, and grow our community around the world. Our goal here is that Bad Voltage becomes the perfect combination of *informative but really fun to listen to*. I have no doubt that our format and approach will continue to improve with each show. We also want to grow an awesome, inclusive, and diverse community of listeners too. Our goal is that people associate the Bad Voltage community as a fun, like-minded set of folks who chat together, play together, collaborate together, and enjoy the show together.
Here’s to a fun year with *Bad Voltage* and we hope you come and be a part of it. 🙂
Growing an Active Ubuntu Advocacy Community
Like many of you, I am tremendously excited about Ubuntu’s future. We are building a powerful convergence platform across multiple devices with a comprehensive developer platform at the heart of it. This could have a profound impact on users and developers alike.
Now, you have all heard me and my team rattling on about this for a while, but we also have a wonderful advocacy community in Ubuntu in the form of our [LoCo Teams](https://loco.ubuntu.com) who are spreading the word. I want to explore ways to help support and grow the events and advocacy that our LoCo Teams are doing.
I had a conversation with [Jose](https://joseeantonior.wordpress.com/) on the LoCo Council about this today, and I think we have a fun plan to move forward with. We are going to need help though, so please let me know in the comments if you can participate.
## Step 1: Ubuntu Advocacy Kit
The [Ubuntu Advocacy Kit](https://launchpad.net/uak) is designed to provide a one-stop shop of information, materials (e.g. logos, brochures, presentations), and more for doing any kind of Ubuntu advocacy. Right now it needs a bit of a spring clean, which I am currently working on.
I think we need to get as many members of our community to utilize the kit. With this in mind we are going to do a few things:
* Get the kit cleaned up and up to date.
* Get it linked on [loco.ubuntu.com](https://loco.ubuntu.com) and encourage our community to use it.
* Encourage our community to contribute to the kit and add additional content.
* Grow the team that maintains the kit.
**Help needed**: great writers and editors.
## Step 2: Advocacy App
The Ubuntu Advocacy Kit works offline. This was a conscious decision with a few benefits:
1. It makes it easier to know you have all relevant content without having to go to a website and download all the assets. When you have the kit, you have all the materials.
2. The kit can be used offline.
3. The kit can be more easily shared.
4. When people contribute to the kit it feels like you are *making something*, as opposed to adding docs to a website. This increases the sense of ownership.
With the kit being contained in an offline HTML state (and the source material in reStructured Text) it means that it wouldn’t be that much work to make a click package of the kit that we can ship on the phone, tablet, and desktop.
Just imagine that: you can use the click store to install the Ubuntu Advocacy Kit and have all the information and materials you need, right from the palm of your hand on your phone, tablet, or desktop.
The current stylesheet for the kit doesn’t render well on a mobile device, so it would be handy if we could map the top-level nav (Documentation, Materials etc) to tabs in an app.
We could also potentially include links to other LoCo resources (e.g. a RSS feed view of news from loco.ubuntu.com) and a list of teams.
If you would be interested in working on this, let me know.
**Help needed**: Ubuntu SDK programmers and artists.
## Step 3: Hangout Workshops
I am going to schedule some hangout workshops to go through some tips of how to organize and run LoCo events and advocacy campaigns, and use the advocacy kit as the source material for the workshop. I hope this will result in more events being coordinated.
**Help needed**: LoCo members who want to grow their skills.
## Step 4: LoCo Portal
We also want to encourage wider use of [loco.ubuntu.com](https://loco.ubuntu.com) so our community can get a great idea of the pule of advocacy, events, and more going on.
**Help needed**: volunteers to run events.
Feedback and volunteers are most welcome!
Community Leadership Summit 2014 Announced!
I am delighted to announce the [Community Leadership Summit 2014](https://www.communityleadershipsummit.com/), now in it’s sixth year! This year it takes place on the **18th and 19th July 2014**, the weekend before [OSCON](https://www.oscon.com/oscon2014) at the [Oregon Convention Center](https://www.oregoncc.org/). Thanks again to [O’Reilly](https://www.oreilly.com) for providing the venue.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the CLS, it is an entirely free event designed to bring together community leaders and managers and the projects and organizations that are interested in growing and empowering a strong community. The event provides an unconference style schedule in which attendees can discuss, debate and explore topics. This is augmented with a range of scheduled talks, panel discussions, networking opportunities and more.
*The heart of CLS is an event driven by the attendees, for the attendees*.
The event provides an opportunity to bring together the leading minds in the field with new community builders to discuss topics such as governance, creating collaborative environments, conflict resolution, transparency, open infrastructure, social networking, commercial investment in community, engineering vs. marketing approaches to community leadership and much more.
The previous events have been hugely successful and a great way to connect together different people from different community backgrounds to share best practice and make community management an art and science better understood and shared by us all.
I will be providing more details about the event closer to the time, but in the meantime be sure to [register](https://www.communityleadershipsummit.com/register/)!
Ask Me Anything on Monday
On **Monday 13th Jan** starting at **6pm UTC (10am Pacific / 1pm Eastern)** I will be doing an AMA on Reddit. For those unfamiliar with this – this is where you can ask me anything on Reddit, and the most popular questions and responses are up/down voted.
The post will go live about 30mins before that time so you can start adding questions.
I welcome questions about absolutely anything to do with Ubuntu, Canonical, community management, working in the Open Source industry, writing books, podcasting, free culture, heavy metal, moving from England to America, or anything else. Let’s have some fun!
For those of you who are unfamiliar with my work, I work at Canonical as the Ubuntu Community Manager, I am the author of [The Art of Community](https://artofcommunityonline.org/) by O’Reilly, founder of the annual [Community Leadership Summit](https://communityleadershipsummit.com/), and have spoken around the world about community leadership and encouraging people to get together to create awesome things.
Outside of my work, I co-founded the [Bad Voltage](https://www.badvoltage.org/), [Lugradio](https://www.lugradio.org), and [Shot Of Jaq](https://www.kryogenix.org/shotofjaq.html) podcasts, founded the Creative Commons metal band Severed Fifth, wrote an [archive of Creative Commons music](https://archivedblog.jonobacon.com/creative/), built the BBQ website [BBQpad](https://bbqpad.com/), write for various magazines (Linux Format / Ubuntu User), and have contributed to various Open Source projects.
I will follow up on Twitter/Google+ with a link to the thread when it is published.
Ubuntu Loco Team App Dev Schools – Volunteers Needed!
2014 is going to be a great year for Ubuntu App Developers. We laid down some fantastic foundations in 2013, but this year we want to extend and grow our community in multiple directions…building a solid, empowered on-ramp for creating awesome apps for Ubuntu.
…but we can’t do this alone, we need your help!
One effort here is to work with our fantastic [LoCo Team Community](https://loco.ubuntu.com) to run a series of Ubuntu App Developer schools across the world. We have one of the greatest advocacy communities anywhere, so this seems like a perfect match.
Fortunately, David Planella has already created some awesome slides and a good tutorial that these schools can work from (he did this for a previous event), and we are here to help provide help and guidance about how to run an event.
As such, we are looking for volunteers to run a local Ubuntu App Dev school in your area. Doing this is as simple as:
* Find a place to run an event and pick a date when to run it.
* Find some other folks in your LoCo who would be interested in helping.
* Get the material and tune it for your event if needed.
* Promote the event locally and encourage people to join.
* Practice the material a few times before the big day, then show up, run the class and have fun.
* Take lots of pictures!
The last step is really important as we would like to create a montage of the events. 🙂
So, if you are interested in participating, send me an email to [email protected] and mention which LoCo team you are part of and where you would run the event, and lets make the magic happen!