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Dan Mueth c2506244b1 Fixed a few typos and updated the maintainer line. 
2001-11-04  Dan Mueth  <d-mueth@uchicago.edu>

        Fixed a few typos and updated the maintainer line.

        * advisory_board.html:
        * board_of_directors.html:
        * charter.html:
        * directory.html:
        * documentation.html:
        * election-2000.html:
        * electionrules.html:
        * elections.html:
        * executive_director.html:
        * faq-ln7.html:
        * faq.html:
        * index.html:
        * membership-form.html:
        * membership-policy.html:
        * membership.html:
        * organization.html:
        * template.html:
2001-11-04 06:58:11 +00:00

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<!doctype html public "-//w3c//dtd html 4.0 transitional//en">
<html>
<head>
<title>The GNOME Foundation FAQ</title>
</head>
<body bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<center>
<table BORDER=2 CELLPADDING=5 WIDTH="595" NOSAVE >
<tr VALIGN=TOP NOSAVE>
<td VALIGN=TOP NOSAVE>
<center>
<a href="http://www.gnome.org">
<img SRC="gnome.jpg" ALT="" height=250 width=198 border=0></a><img
SRC="text.png" ALT="The GNOME Foundation" height=198 width=354>
</center>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<center>
<a href="index.html">Home</a> :&nbsp;
<a href="organization.html">Organization</a> :&nbsp;
Documentation :&nbsp;
<a href="membership.html">Membership</a> :&nbsp;
<a href="elections.html">Elections</a> :&nbsp;
<a href="directory.html">Directory</a>
</center>
<br>
<center>
<a href="documentation.html">Index</a> :&nbsp;
<a href="charter.html">Charter</a> :&nbsp;
FAQ
</center>
</td>
</tr>
<!-- End of Boilerplate -->
<tr>
<td>
<br>
<h2>GNOME Foundation FAQ</h2>
<P
CLASS="COPYRIGHT"
><A
HREF="faq-ln7.html"
>Copyright</A
> &copy; 2000 by Dan Mueth and Havoc Pennington</P
><HR
WIDTH="75%"
ALIGN="CENTER"
COLOR="#000000"
SIZE="1"></DIV
><P
> This is a list of the most frequently asked questions about the
GNOME Foundation.
</P
><DIV
CLASS="QANDASET"
><DL
><DT
>1. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN13"
>General</A
></DT
><DD
><DL
><DT
>1.1. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN16"
> What is the GNOME Foundation?
</A
></DT
><DT
>1.2. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN21"
> Why does GNOME need the GNOME Foundation?
</A
></DT
><DT
>1.3. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN35"
> Is there a web page for the GNOME Foundation?
</A
></DT
><DT
>1.4. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN40"
> Where can I read the current draft of the GNOME Foundation charter?
</A
></DT
><DT
>1.5. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN45"
> Who are the members of the GNOME Foundation?
</A
></DT
><DT
>1.6. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN50"
> Is the GNOME Foundation an industry consortium?
</A
></DT
><DT
>1.7. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN55"
> Why did so many large companies join the GNOME Foundation?
</A
></DT
><DT
>1.8. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN60"
> Will GNOME continue to work with KDE to develop compatibility
and desktop standards?
</A
></DT
><DT
>1.9. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN65"
> Who can I contact with questions about the GNOME Foundation?
</A
></DT
></DL
></DD
><DT
>2. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN69"
>GNOME Foundation Structure</A
></DT
><DD
><DL
><DT
>2.1. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN72"
> What does the advisory board do and who is on it?
</A
></DT
><DT
>2.2. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN77"
> What is the board of directors and what does it do?
</A
></DT
><DT
>2.3. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN82"
> What is the membership and what does it do?
</A
></DT
></DL
></DD
><DT
>3. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN86"
>Joining the GNOME Foundation</A
></DT
><DD
><DL
><DT
>3.1. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN89"
> Who can join the Membership?
</A
></DT
><DT
>3.2. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN94"
> How can I join the GNOME Foundation as a member?
</A
></DT
><DT
>3.3. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN99"
> Who can join the advisory board?
</A
></DT
><DT
>3.4. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN104"
> Should my company join the GNOME Foundation?
</A
></DT
><DT
>3.5. <A
HREF="faq.html#AEN109"
> How can my company join the advisory board?
</A
></DT
></DL
></DD
></DL
><DIV
CLASS="QANDADIV"
><H3
><A
NAME="AEN13"
></A
>1. General</H3
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN16"
></A
><B
>1.1. </B
> What is the GNOME Foundation?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> The GNOME Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to
advancing the GNOME Project. The GNOME Project is a free
software development effort, intended to create an open source
platform for home, office, and appliance desktops.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN21"
></A
><B
>1.2. </B
> Why does GNOME need the GNOME Foundation?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> The GNOME Foundation serves several important roles:
<P
></P
><OL
TYPE="1"
><LI
><P
> GNOME has grown to a point where we have hundreds of developers as well
as a fair number of companies working together to improve GNOME.
GNOME's previous, completely informal method for making decisions does
not scale well to its current size. The GNOME Foundation will provide
a forum where all of the members of the GNOME community can have a
voice and help decide the direction that GNOME moves in.
</P
></LI
><LI
><P
> GNOME needs a voice. The GNOME Foundation will be
responsible for communicating information about GNOME to
the media and corporations.
</P
></LI
><LI
><P
> The GNOME Foundation will make GNOME more open. All of the important
"political" decisions which used to be made behind the scenes by the
top GNOME hackers will now be made in public by the GNOME Foundation.
Technical decisions will still be made by package maintainers.
</P
></LI
><LI
><P
> The GNOME Foundation is a legal entity that can accept donations and
make purchases to benefit GNOME.
</P
></LI
></OL
>
</P
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN35"
></A
><B
>1.3. </B
> Is there a web page for the GNOME Foundation?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> For now, there is no dedicated GNOME Foundation page, only
the GNOME Project page.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN40"
></A
><B
>1.4. </B
> Where can I read the current draft of the GNOME Foundation charter?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> The current draft of the charter is at
http://www.decrem.com/gnomefdn.html. This is an informal document,
which will guide the lawyers as they write the formal paperwork
required for incorporation (such as the foundation bylaws).
</P
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN45"
></A
><B
>1.5. </B
> Who are the members of the GNOME Foundation?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> Anyone who has contributed to the GNOME Project may become a member of
the GNOME Foundation. The primary benefit of membership is the ability to vote
for the Foundation's board of directors. If you have CVS access, become a
member by adding your information to gnome-foundation/membership.txt in
CVS. Otherwise, mail your full real name, your email address, and a sentence
or so describing your contribution to GNOME to membership@gnome.org, and they
will add you. Contributions need not be code - documentation, webmastering, etc.
are also considered GNOME contributions.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN50"
></A
><B
>1.6. </B
> Is the GNOME Foundation an industry consortium?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> No. In the current draft of the charter, corporations are represented on
an advisory board, which has no decision-making power. Individuals
working for a corporation may be elected to the board of directors by a
popular vote of the GNOME Foundation membership (i.e. GNOME developers and
contributors). Also, the GNOME Foundation charter specifies that the
board of directors cannot have a majority of individuals affiliated with
any single company.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN55"
></A
><B
>1.7. </B
> Why did so many large companies join the GNOME Foundation?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> These companies wanted to see the Linux and UNIX desktop move forward
decisively, so put their support behind GNOME.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN60"
></A
><B
>1.8. </B
> Will GNOME continue to work with KDE to develop compatibility
and desktop standards?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> Yes. The GNOME Foundation is simply a response to the increasingly
difficult task of managing a project as large as the GNOME Project. It
does not represent a significant change in technical direction or overall
goals. It is not intended to be an attack on anyone else, simply a positive
step for GNOME.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN65"
></A
><B
>1.9. </B
> Who can I contact with questions about the GNOME Foundation?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> If you're a contributor or community member, you might mail
foundation-list@gnome.org, where discussion of the foundation is
ongoing. It's probably a good idea to read the current draft of the
charter first, to avoid repeating issues we've already covered. If you're
a member of the press, you might mail gnome-press-contact@gnome.org.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDADIV"
><H3
><A
NAME="AEN69"
></A
>2. GNOME Foundation Structure</H3
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN72"
></A
><B
>2.1. </B
> What does the advisory board do and who is on it?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> The advisory board is comprised of companies and organizations which want
to further the progress of GNOME. This is a forum for them to communicate
with each other and the GNOME Foundation membership. They have no power
to make decisions about GNOME. We've invited the Debian Project and the
Free Software Foundation to join the advisory board in addition to the
companies who announced their support at LinuxWorld this year.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN77"
></A
><B
>2.2. </B
> What is the board of directors and what does it do?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> The board of directors is a group of GNOME contributors who are elected by
the membership (i.e. every person who contributes to GNOME). This group
oversees the GNOME Project and does its best to keep things running
smoothly, making decisions that need to be made. Typical activities of the
board might include approving the purchase of a new server, talking to
companies about getting involved with GNOME, making sure we have a release
roadmap and release coordinators, and so on.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN82"
></A
><B
>2.3. </B
> What is the membership and what does it do?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> The GNOME Foundation membership is comprised of everybody who
contributes to the GNOME project. Thus, it it primarily
comprised of volunteer GNOME contributors (even with all the
corporate contributions to GNOME, volunteers still make up the
majority of contributors - GNOME is a huge project). The
membership's primary role (aside from participation in the GNOME
Project) is to elect the board of directors.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDADIV"
><H3
><A
NAME="AEN86"
></A
>3. Joining the GNOME Foundation</H3
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN89"
></A
><B
>3.1. </B
> Who can join the Membership?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> Anybody who contributes to GNOME can become a member.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN94"
></A
><B
>3.2. </B
> How can I join the GNOME Foundation as a member?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> Send an email to membership@gnome.org with your name, email address,
and a description of how you have contributed to GNOME.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN99"
></A
><B
>3.3. </B
> Who can join the advisory board?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> Any company or organization with an interest in GNOME can join the
advisory board.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN104"
></A
><B
>3.4. </B
> Should my company join the GNOME Foundation?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> The advisory board is a forum where your company can discuss GNOME with
other companies and key figures from the GNOME community. Joining the
advisory board also allows you to show your support for the GNOME Project.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QANDAENTRY"
><DIV
CLASS="QUESTION"
><P
><A
NAME="AEN109"
></A
><B
>3.5. </B
> How can my company join the advisory board?
</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ANSWER"
><P
><B
> </B
> In the current charter (which is not yet official, because we have not yet
legally incorporated the foundation), there is an annual fee of $10,000 to
join the advisory board. This money is used to support the GNOME Project,
by purchasing servers, attending conferences, etc. The companies that
announced their participation at LinuxWorld were expressing their intent
to join the foundation once it is formally incorporated. The primary benefit of
joining the advisory board is the opportunity to discuss GNOME issues
with the other companies on the board, and the opportunity to show your
support for the GNOME Project.
</P
><P
> If you're interested in discussing membership in the advisory board,
mail Miguel de Icaza (miguel@helixcode.com) and he'll put you in touch
with the interim steering committee we've established to handle
Foundation details until formal incorporation is complete.
</P
></DIV
></DIV
></DIV
></DIV
></DIV
>
<!-- Start of Boilerplate -->
<tr>
<td>
<center><font size=-1>This site is maintained by
<a href="mailto:membership@gnome.org">the GNOME Foundation Membership and Elections Committee</a>
and was designed by <a href="mailto:jpsc@users.sourceforge.net">JP
Schnapper-Casteras</a> and <a href="mailto:bart@eazel.com">Bart Decrem</a>.</font></center>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</center>
</body>
</html>
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