Category Archives: OpenSym 2016

Differentiating Communication Styles of Leaders on the Linux Kernel Mailing List

Announcement, Conference Contributions, F/L/OSS Track, Full Research Papers, OpenSym 2016, Proceedings, Research Contributions, Research Tracks

Title: Differentiating Communication Styles of Leaders on the Linux Kernel Mailing List

Authors: Daniel Schneider, Scott Spurlock and Megan Squire (Elon University)

Abstract: Much communication between developers of free, libre, and open source software (FLOSS) projects happens on email mailing lists. Geographically and temporally dispersed development teams use email as an asynchronous, centralized, persistently stored institutional memory for sharing code samples, discussing bugs, and making decisions. Email is especially important to large, mature projects, such as the Linux kernel, which has thousands of developers and a multilayered leadership structure. In this paper, we collect and analyze data to understand the communication patterns in such a community. How do the leaders of the Linux Kernel project write in email? What are the salient features of their writing, and can we discern one leader from another? We find that there are clear written markers for two leaders who have been particularly important to recent discussions of leadership style on the Linux Kernel Mailing List (LKML): Linux Torvalds and Greg Kroah-Hartman. Furthermore, we show that it is straightforward to use a machine learning strategy to automatically differentiate these two leaders based on their writing. Our findings will help researchers understand how this community works, and why there is occasional controversy regarding differences in communication styles on the LKML.

This contribution to OpenSym 2016 will be made available as part of the OpenSym 2016 proceedings on or after August 17, 2016.

Motivation of Newcomers to FLOSS Projects

Announcement, Conference Contributions, F/L/OSS Track, Full Research Papers, OpenSym 2016, Proceedings, Research Contributions, Research Tracks

Title: Motivation of Newcomers to FLOSS Projects

Authors: Christoph Hannebauer and Volker Gruhn (paluno – The Ruhr Institute for Software Technology University of Duisburg-Essen)

Abstract: While the motivations of Free/Libre and Open Source Software (FLOSS) developers have been the subject of extensive research, the motivations for their initial contribution to a FLOSS project has received only little attention. This survey of 94 newcomers to the FLOSS projects Mozilla and GNOME identifies the motivations for the modification of the FLOSS components and for the submission of these modifications back to the FLOSS project. With the responses, we test a hypothesis based on the previous qualitative research on newcomer motivations: Most newcomers modify a component because they need the modification for themselves. Surprisingly, this is not the case for our respondents, who have a variety of primary modification motivations. Newcomer occupation is discussed as a reason for this difference to previous results.

This contribution to OpenSym 2016 will be made available as part of the OpenSym 2016 proceedings on or after August 17, 2016.

Observing Custom Software Modifications: A Quantitative Approach of Tracking the Evolution of Patch Stacks

Announcement, Conference Contributions, F/L/OSS Track, OpenSym 2016, Proceedings, Research Contributions, Research Tracks, Short Research Papers

Title: Observing Custom Software Modifications: A Quantitative Approach of Tracking the Evolution of Patch Stacks

Authors: Ralf Ramsauer (Technical University of Applied Sciences Regensburg); Daniel Lohmann (Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg); Wolfgang Mauerer (Technical University of Applied Sciences Regensburg Siemens AG, Munich)

Abstract: Modifications to open-source software (OSS) are often provided in the form of “patch stacks”– sets of changes (patches) that modify a given body of source code. Maintaining patch stacks over extended periods of time is problematic when the underlying base project changes frequently. This necessitates a continuous and engineering-intensive adaptation of the stack. Nonetheless, long-term maintenance is an important problem for changes that are not integrated into projects, for instance when they are controversial or only of value to a limited group of users. We present and implement a methodology to systematically examine the temporal evolution of patch stacks, track non-functional properties like integrability and maintainability, and estimate the eventual economic and engineering effort required to successfully develop and maintain patch stacks. Our results provide a basis for quantitative research on patch stacks, including statistical analyses and other methods that lead to actionable advice on the construction and long-term maintenance of custom extensions to OSS.

This contribution to OpenSym 2016 will be made available as part of the OpenSym 2016 proceedings on or after August 17, 2016.

GNU Health: A Free/Libre Community-based Health Information System

Announcement, Conference Contributions, Keynotes / Invited Talks, OpenSym 2016

Luis Falcón Martín of GNU Solidario, will be presenting the following keynote at OpenSym 2016:

Title: GNU Health: A Free/Libre Community-based Health Information System

Abstract: GNU Health is community-based, Free/Libre Health and Hospital Information System, deployed in many countries around the globe. It merges Social Medicine with state of the art advances in bioinformatics, providing a framework for integrative medicine, governments and Public Health institutions as well as research organizations. In this presentation we will talk about case studies in Public health, integration with other Free Software community projects such as OpenStreetMaps, and the upcoming GNU Health Federation model to interconnect large, heterogeneous health networks. We will present some of the upcoming features on GNU Health, including topics on interoperability and standards (HL7 FHIR) or MyGnuHealth, a mobile application for Personal Health. Finally, we will dedicate a section to the GNU Health functionality on bioinformatics, personalized medicine, clinical genetics, big data, and cooperation with the academia, research institutions and multi-lateral organizations.

Speaker’s Biography: Luis Falcón, M.D., B.Sc, holds a degree in Computer Science and Mathematics from the California State University, Northridge (USA) and in Medicine from IUCS, Buenos Aires (Argentina). Luis is a social, animal rights and Free Software activist. He is the founder of GNU Solidario, a nonprofit organization that delivers Health and Education with Free Software. Luis is the author of GNU Health (http://health.gnu.org), the award-winning Free/Libre Health and Hospital Information System. He is a guest speaker at national and international conferences about Free Software, eHealth and Social Medicine. He currently lives in the Canary Islands.

This contribution to OpenSym 2016 will be made available as part of the OpenSym 2016 proceedings on or after August 17, 2016.

Good Citizenship is Good Business: Open Source, Sustainable Development and the Corporate Bottom Line

Announcement, Conference Contributions, Keynotes / Invited Talks, OpenSym 2016

Leslie Hawthorn will be presenting the following keynote at OpenSym 2016:

Title: Good Citizenship is Good Business: Open Source, Sustainable Development and the Corporate Bottom Line

Abstract: This talk examines the current landscape of open source project and enterprise interplay, including the tensions between them. Leslie will demonstrate how models have developed to ease these problematic areas for corporations, but how these new models do not necessarily meet the needs of individual developers. She will conclude with a discussion of how adhering to well-worn approaches to open source software development are not only best practice for corporate players, but provide them with long-term benefits from the perspective of sustainability, employee retention and community good will.

Speaker’s Biography: As an internationally known Developer Relations strategist and Community Management expert, Leslie Hawthorn has spent the past decade creating, cultivating, and enabling open source communities. She’s best known for creating Google Code-in, the world’s first global initiative to involve pre-university students in open source software development, launching the second-most trafficked Google’s Developer Blog, and receiving an O’Reilly Open Source Award in 2010 for her work to grow the Google Summer of Code program and her contributions to Humanitarian open source projects. During her 15 years working in the technology industry, Leslie has developed, honed and shared open source expertise spanning the Enterprise to NGOs, including senior roles at Google, Red Hat, the Open Source Initiative, the OSU Open Source Lab and several startups, including Elastic. Born and raised in Silicon Valley, she and her family now call Amsterdam home, though she travels worldwide to keynote about open source, and building products and teams that are built to last. You can follow her adventures on Twitter @lhawthorn.

This contribution to OpenSym 2016 will be made available as part of the OpenSym 2016 proceedings on or after August 17, 2016.

Truly Open OER: What the Open Education Movement Can Learn from Open Source’s Success

Announcement, Conference Contributions, Keynotes / Invited Talks, OpenSym 2016

Adam Blum of Open Ed, will be presenting the following keynote at OpenSym 2016:

Title: Truly Open OER: What the Open Education Movement Can Learn from Open Source’s Success

Abstract: Most OER repositories have been around for more than a decade but the growth rates have been marginal. By contrast open source has become the dominant platform for web development. We believe the primary reason is that OER has not become truly open. A new definition of “open” in OER could be: open source the catalog itself, provide an open API for searching and contributing resources, open universal access to all partners, and openness to paid and free content. We’ll describe how each of these principles will accelerate adoption and impact of OER.

Speaker’s Biography: CEO/CTO/VP Engineering of several successful startups. Formerly adjunct professor at UC Berkeley and Carnegie Mellon. Author of three computer science texts, including first book on web server development. Continually active open source contributor. Now building OpenEd – the largest K-12 resource library and “operating system for personalized learning”, used by many other ed tech companies to provide just the right resource for each student. OpenEd was acquired by ACT in May of this year.

This contribution to OpenSym 2016 will be made available as part of the OpenSym 2016 proceedings on or after August 17, 2016.

Second round of Industry and Community Track Submissions open until June 2nd

OpenSym 2016

In order to accomodate the time-line of industry participants of OpenSym 2016, we have two deadlines for industry and community track contributions. The first one passed already, but the second one for late-comers is still open. Submit your paper or proposal by June 2nd! Learn more about the OpenSym 2016 industry track.

OpenSym 2016 Call for Submissions (Papers)

Announcement, OpenSym 2016

OpenSym 2016, the 12th International Symposium on Open Collaboration

August 17-19, 2016 | Berlin, Germany

Research paper submission deadline is April 8th, 2016. Submit now!

http://opensym.org/os2016

About the Conference

The 12th International Symposium on Open Collaboration (OpenSym 2016) is the premier conference on open collaboration research and practice, including open source, open data, open education, wikis and related social media, Wikipedia, and IT-driven open innovation research.

OpenSym is the first conference series to bring together the different strands of open collaboration research and practice, seeking to create synergies and inspire new collaborations between computer scientists, social scientists, legal scholars, and everyone interested in understanding open collaboration and how it is changing the world.

OpenSym 2016 will be held in Berlin, Germany, on August 17-19, 2016.

Continue reading OpenSym 2016 Call for Submissions (Papers) →