Koozali.org: home of the SME Server
Contribs.org Forums => General Discussion => Topic started by: ReetP on April 18, 2013, 08:47:57 AM
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[Posted to discussion list]
Hi all,
I just wanted to post a quick note on behind the scenes progress.
I had hoped that by now we could have posted some proposals for one and
all to consider, but as is the nature of things it has taken longer than
expected and there have been one or two last minute hitches.
I can only assure you that a lot of people have been working very hard
to try and lay some new foundations for SME so we can build on it and
move forward.
I am hoping that I can post a pile of stuff for you to digest next week.
In the meantime, well done to all for the fantastic progress on v9
I understand that there is not much more blocking a Beta, which is quite
simply staggering IMHO. But we aren't there yet and cannot afford to be
complacent and ease off the gas.
It's not difficult to help. If you haven't already done so, please go
and get a copy, fire up a box or VM, and go and try and break it. Push
every button and link and abuse it in every way you can
Simple as that.
If you have problems then please post a bug. If you don't know how, or
need a hand please just ask, either on the lists, on IRC freenode
#SME_Server or email me and I will point you in the right direction.
And finally to all those in the background who have helped and supported
me over the last few months, I just want to say a big thank you. You are
a truly inspirational bunch and a privilege to work with.
Oooohhhhh... I am SO excited
B. Rgds
John
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Thanks John for the update.
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Thanks John for the update.
No worries - I'm glad at least one person is watching :-)
There is some interesting stuff to come so please keep a weather eye out. I hope we can get it smashed out next week - there are still a few things that need tweaking (or maybe reconsidering completely) but I think we are nearly there.
I didn't want to post a whole series of vapourware type statements, but I did want people to know that we haven't been idle, and things ARE happening. We have followed things along the lines of the post I made at the start of the year. So no great surprises in most departments.....
Anyway, I am looking forward to seeing what everyone else thinks !
B. Rgds
John
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I think there is more than one watching, thanks again for spearheading the delvelopment.
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I think there is more than one watching, thanks again for spearheading the delvelopment.
Ditto..... and thank you
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Ditto..... and thank you
Do you know what ? There are days like this when it all seems worthwhile :-)
Thanks for the kind words.
Just hope you all stick with us in the next phase !
B. Rgds
John
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Thank you on the update. On the SME 9 development wiki page, the status is not changed from March 12, so this is really a good progress and news.
I have seen a lot of discussion what to include (horde, sogo, zarafa, egroupware, etc.) in the upcoming SME as mail groupware platform, and as I can see from the wiki, it is still horde 3. Any ideas/steps to move to horde version 5?
Regards,
Miroslav
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Thank you on the update. On the SME 9 development wiki page, the status is not changed from March 12, so this is really a good progress and news.
Sorry about that - things are happening quite fast and we need to update things.
You will see much more if you are on the dev list and the bug track. If you are not there, why not ? :-) There are jobs for one and all, and we need al the help we can get if you want to see v9 finished......
I have seen a lot of discussion what to include (horde, sogo, zarafa, egroupware, etc.) in the upcoming SME as mail groupware platform, and as I can see from the wiki, it is still horde 3. Any ideas/steps to move to horde version 5?
Current plan is to get SME up to the CentOS6 base and change as little as possible at present - that was what we agreed at the besieging of the year.
That does two things :
1. It's a relatively achievable target
2. It gives a 'longer lasting' and more up to date base to work on
For every extra package that we try to add or subtract, the development time multiplies massively and it with current levels of people actually working, v9 would never get as I am sure once we said 'we'll add this' then someone else will want that.
Better to stick to simple and manageable targets for now.
Where we go from v9 is in the hands of the people who do the work.......
This should give you a lot of the packages that will be installed by default - subject to updates from upstream (currently it is based on CentOS 6.3) :
http://wiki.contribs.org/SME9RPMList
Put your suggestions on the Wish List here :
http://wiki.contribs.org/SME_Server_wishlist
This is where we are on the current Roadmap :
http://wiki.contribs.org/SME9.0_Roadmap
If I remember I believe that two major blockers to a Beta, but we may have another Alpha release before then. Again, follow the bugs and devs list.
Whilst I am here....
As I will say until I am blue in the face, if you want v9 then you have to support it. Either with cash, or work, or both :-)
It will NOT get built by itself. Don't ask 'what will it do for me'. Ask 'what you can I do to help make it work'
Some simple sums to illustrate the problem :
There are something like 30,000 SME installs out there.
Quite a few people make quite a nice income from SME, and that is good. BUT.
If everyone contributed USD 1 per install per year we would have an income of USD 30,000 to enable us to do more work on SME. We are lucky if we raise USD 5,000 per year right now, and we don't even cover the costs of the server infrastructure. That means people are paying out of their own pockets to maintain SME. That HAS to change.
If everyone contributed one hour per install per year in work, we would have 30,000 man hours to play with. If they did one hour per month, you can imagine the results it would bring.....
The current number of people seriously developing it can probably be counted on two hands. They do not get paid for their work, and do it in their spare time. The number of testers is higher, but still probably only number in the tens, and possibly 100's
So you can work it out yourselves. If you want x, y or z then please help.
:-)
I hope we will post some things for you all to consider later this week - again, its all down to how much time we all have.
In the meantime, do like others have - install a VM and SME v9 and try bug hunting or verification.
The more people do the quicker it gets done.
If you aren't sure what to do the join in on IRC freenode #SME_Server, post on the lists, or write to me and ask how to help. You really don't need any skills, and we are keen to try and help those who want to learn.
B. Rgds
John
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Hi John,
I have purpose built a server to test and run Vs 9Alpha3. It is based on an Intel DQ77Mk motherboard with an Intel Core i7-3770 3.40 GHz CPU and 16 Gb of ram. One advantage of this board is the dual network ports. It is set up as a server and gateway with 3 or 4 windows machines on the lan and serves a family genealogy type (low traffic) website (via a broadband connection) to the net.
I appreciate you may not use this rig for an enterprise business but the report card is that it has run flawlessly (with updates applied) since Vs 9a3 was first available. For a new version to have this degree of basic stability so early in the development phase is a credit to you and the team. Sure there are things that don't work like backup to workstation/desktop but what a great base to develop on. Congratulations.
MikeT
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Hi John,
I have purpose built a server to test and run Vs 9Alpha3. It is based on an Intel DQ77Mk motherboard with an Intel Core i7-3770 3.40 GHz CPU and 16 Gb of ram. One advantage of this board is the dual network ports. It is set up as a server and gateway with 3 or 4 windows machines on the lan and serves a family genealogy type (low traffic) website (via a broadband connection) to the net.
I appreciate you may not use this rig for an enterprise business but the report card is that it has run flawlessly (with updates applied) since Vs 9a3 was first available. For a new version to have this degree of basic stability so early in the development phase is a credit to you and the team. Sure there are things that don't work like backup to workstation/desktop but what a great base to develop on. Congratulations.
MikeT
Hi Mike,
that is a fantastic report back and thank you for posting it. It is really nice to hear positive feedback and it gives everyone a boost and spurs them on to greater heights - a simple thank you costs nothing and puts a smile on your face !
The devs who are working on this are true stars and we should all be extremely grateful for their enormous talent and enthusiasm. They are a great bunch of people, and a pleasure and privilege to work with.
I can confirm that we have finally got some real things in place now and I am hoping to post some news for digestion and discussion in the next couple of days - there has been a huge amount going on in the background and but we wanted to make sure that any announcements weren't just vapourware.
I trust that you will all support us in ensuring we have a great future.
B. Rgds
John