Hello all, Thank you for your consideration.
> Each of the nominees is invited to post information about their > general background, their involvement with BSD and with BSDCert, and > what they would like the BSDCert group to accomplish over the > next year. Some of you know me as a BSDTalk guest host while others perhaps know me as the BSD Fund Program Director. BSD Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that raises money for project-agnostic BSD initiatives such as events and cross-platform tools. In brief, I: Have been back in Portland, Oregon for one year having spend the last eight years in Riga, Latvia. Have used "open systems" and the Internet since January of 1991. Have used various BSD's full time in some way since 2002 and contracted the cross-platform SysJail and mult multiplicity (virtualization) solutions and have spoken about multiplicity strategies at EuroBSDCon and in Portland, Oregon. Am the BSD Fund program manager and have worked for MandrakeSoft SA on their internal support team. As BSD Fund program manager I launched the BSD Fund Visa which has provided funding to BSDCan, PGCon and the upcoming meetBSD event. I also raised money to bring the pcc compiler into the modern era through AMD64 support and imporoved GCC compatibility. This work is undergoing beta testing. Was the single person to take the first "release" BSDCert exam at SCaLE in Los Angeles. I trust that the poster with the signature(s) is still around somewhere. Have negotiated to open a new testing center in Latvia and spoke at length with Jim Brown about strategies for the BSDP and in turn with Peter Hansteen about a possible interim PF exam. As for BSDCert in the coming year, I highly suggest a focus on smaller, achievable milestones that provide tangible value to those seeking certification. With the BSDP certification once appearing to be an insurmountable project, I proposed a PF exam as it would focus on what many consider the "killer app" of the BSD's. Regarding the BSDP certification, I was impressed by the online terminal-in-a-web-page system used by O'Reilly Media's "university" and suggest that some inquiry be made as to if this tool could aid the BSDP: http://www.oreillyschool.com/ My position on certification: Jim Brown succeeded in convincing me that certification has its place and maintains integrity through confidentiality, despite our community's natural tendency toward openness. It is a tool, just like any piece of software. Nothing more and nothing less. To hear jaded developers say that "all certification is crap" is a disservice to people who are in environments that encourage/require certification or, most importantly in my eyes, people who want to jump-start a career prior to acquiring previous employment. Jaded HR departments were happy to require ten years of Java experience when the language was only three years old. Any tool to penetrate such glass ceilings is a good thing. I have a longer bio that I threw out in favor of the above. I can provide this on an individual basis for those whom I have never met and would like to know more about my position on various community issues. If anything, while I lean towards ISC/BSD licensing, I firmly believe that "software freedom" can only be guaranteed if a given project is entrusted to a public-benefit nonprofit organization that is required by law to uphold a mission to keep that project "free". My public opinion on copyleft vs. copy center licensing is that we should check back in 20 years to see who was right. Please advise as to if I should elaborate on any points. I have *not* been following the BSDCert news this last year but I feel this gives me a fresh opinion. I am also happy to discuss this by phone individually or as part of a conference call. All the best, Michael Dexter _______________________________________________ BSDCert mailing list [email protected] http://lists.nycbug.org/mailman/listinfo/bsdcert
