Category: Ubuntu

Ubuntu Global Jam in Kitchener-Waterloo

Kwartzlab is hosting Ubuntu Waterloo‘s Global Jam a week from Saturday (Sept. 2).

{ first jam / premier bœuf }

Along with the usual upgrade and install testing, bug triage, documentation work and so on, Ralph has a project idea. We’re going to run a hackathon to build a new GUI packaging tool, starting with the relatively straight-forward process of upgrading an existing package to the latest version.

So if you’re interested in learning about packaging, GUI development in Qt or Ubuntu development in general, be sure to come by!

If development isn’t your thing, we still need lots of people trying out Oneiric Ocelot on their hardware and submitting any bugs they might find.

Come out and see how you can contribute to make Ubuntu better!

Hi, Planet!

[ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: Ubuntu Membership]As of last night, I am an [Ubuntu Member](https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Membership). Which means I have a bunch of new readers on [Planet Ubuntu](http://planet.ubuntu.com).

Hey, guys. :D

I’m one of the LoCo contacts for [Ubuntu Canada](http://loco.ubuntu.com/teams/ubuntu-ca/) (along with [Ralph](http://drupal.txwikinger.me.uk/). I live in the lovely and exciting city of [[wiki:Waterloo, Ontario]] and I’m president of [Kwartzlab](http://kwartzlab.ca/) the local hackerspace. I throw awesome, nerdy Ubuntu release parties, complete with cake. Because all parties need cake.

[Me at our Karmic release party. With cake]

You can read more about the stuff I’ve done on my [wiki page](https://wiki.ubuntu.com/dscassel/).

As for what I’m doing, tomorrow I leave for Montreal, and I’m looking forward to meeting [Fabián](https://wiki.ubuntu.com/FabiánRodríguez), [Eric](https://wiki.ubuntu.com/sipherdee) and other folks from [Ubuntu Quebec](http://loco.ubuntu.com/teams/ubuntu-qc/). If you’re in Montreal, [you should come too](http://loco.ubuntu.com/events/ubuntu-qc/1161/detail/)!

And we’re only two weeks away from the Ubuntu Global Jam. If you’re in KW or the surrounding area, you should [join us at Kwartzlab](http://loco.ubuntu.com/events/ubuntu-ca/1103/detail/), Saturday, September 3. We have a [development project idea](http://drupal.txwikinger.me.uk/content/ubuntu-ca-loco-project-global-jam-september-2011) which, if we’re successful will help package maintainers with future Ubuntu upgrades. And, of course, we’ll have the usual testing and triaging if coding up packaging tools isn’t your thing.

So stay tuned! And, Planet, it’s a pleasure meeting you at last.

Ubuntu Global Jam, April 2

[I'm going to Ubuntu Global Jam!]Ubuntu Waterloo is hosting our third Ubuntu Global Jam, Saturday, April 2 at Kwartzlab.

The Global Jam is a worldwide event to make Ubuntu better. Ubuntu 11.04, the Natty Narwhal will be released in a little over a month and the Global Jam give the community (that’s us) a chance to help find bugs, triage them and fix them.

Starting at 2pm, we’ll have an informal open space conference on the theme of contributing to Ubuntu (and open source in general) in the afternoon. If you have experience or questions, please bring them. In the evening, we can embark on whatever exciting project we were inspired to do in the afternoon.

Join us and help make Ubuntu better!

Clutter

A couple days ago, I gave a presentation on Clutter (the API for building animated graphical user interfaces for touchscreens and the like) to [KWLUG](kwlug.org). Here’s a shorter, screencast version of the presentation:

The slides themselves were created in python with Clutter. You can pull the source down from launchpad with `bzr branch lp:~dscassel/+junk/clutter-presentation/` if you have bzr.

Ubuntu LAN Party!

From Ubuntu LAN Party

[[Kwartzlab]] has been talking about throwing a LAN party for a while now. We’ve got power, a network and drinks, so it’s ideal. [Eric](http://kwartzlab.ca/blog/egerlach) and I got to talking, though, and with the [[Ubuntu]] stuff in Waterloo centered largely around Kwartzlab it would be extra awesome if it was a free software LAN party. Everything we play is open source and available through the Ubuntu repositories.

So he went off and [tested some games](http://kwartzlab.ca/mediawiki/index.php/LAN_Party_Event_Planning), made a live CD, set up a meta-package and we played some games.

Games we played, in rough order of awesome:

* [TeeWorlds](http://teeworlds.com/)
* [Hedge Wars](http://www.hedgewars.org/)
* [Armagetron 3D](http://armagetronad.net/)
* [OpenArena](http://openarena.ws/smfnews.php)
* [gtetrinet](http://gtetrinet.sourceforge.net/)
* [boswars](http://www.boswars.org/)
* [Pioneers](http://sourceforge.net/projects/pio/)

(Pioneers is awesome, but its reception was a bit disappointing, mainly because only Eric and I had ever played Settlers before. Generally, I think if you’re going to the trouble of getting people together in a room, you’re better off playing the boardgame. Over distances, with seasoned Settlers fans, it has much more potential).

We started small, limiting ourselves to Kwartzlab people and a few friends. But our goal is to get other Ubuntu groups involved, ideally culminating in a cross-country or international Ubuntu LAN party. Which is just awesome.