Open Source Ecology Forums

aneiren

This may seem a bit premature, but do we have program managers to coordinate the project managers, develop/implement standards, allocate resources among projects, and act as temporary Project Manager on orphaned projects?

Implementation of program manager role early in the process is necessary to ensure the individual projects are following the OSE specification and that standard part libraries and solution catalogs are developed and shared. It would also allow remote engineers to contribute while keeping the prototypes in a single location by developing a separate fabrication and testing team that remains on site and simply feeds test data to the engineers and makes modifications per engineering change request processes (which can seem tedious but are important for record keeping and extracting lessons learned)

Thoughts?

ARGHaynes

http://openfarmtech.org/wiki/GVCS_Tools_Status

Dawg

Yes we need this badly. You are right on here. I'm not sure what is in the works at the moment.

I sense our upper infra-structure is still forming.

The Dawg

Jason

I agree. We almost need a dedicated wiki and forum for each program, or some other means to get a current snapshot, history, and timeline of each program.

Jiff64138

I would like to repeat what I posted on the thread Social Media and Action on May 10
"My view is that ideally there should be a person(s) of proven experience in the field and understanding of the goals to work as hubs for each of but not limited to the scopes in the crash course outliner.http://openfarmtech.org/wiki/Crash_course_on_OSE#Scope_of_the_GVCS"

Daniel

Since open source projects often rely on volunteers, there is a tendency for people to work on the exciting parts, like writing new code in software projects, and not on the necessary but boring parts like documentation and test, for example. Being a retired aerospace engineer with a lot of experience in the boring parts, I've started helping with stuff like http://openfarmtech.org/wiki/Category:Functional_Block_Diagrams , since I didn't see it being done. Whatever "manager" or "team organizer" we get should look for gaping holes in the project, and try to find people to fill them.

aneiren

What is the application process to be in that hub position?

Jason

@aneiren

If you think you have the free time, the skills, and the drive, I'd suggest writing a 1 page letter to Marcin stating all that, then he should make a blog post or some other communication telling everyone to contact you with their skills and interests, then you assign tasks.

vann

Guys, all good comments. I'm a software developer onsite working part time with Marcin to look at a better way to manage the GCVS production using existing (preferably open source or free for nonprofit/public project) project mgmt and contact mgmt tools.

I suggest we start a Google Group to discuss our needs. Please email me at vann.miller@gmail.com if you would like to be a part of it.

Dawg

Could we not create an invite only management thread here? What would be gained by moving to Google?

Your answer could also guide us to realizing some of the shortcomings of this forum software. A topic that has come up lately.

Cheers,

The Dawg

Jason

Agreed Dawg. We've already got these forums, a wiki, a blog, and twitter.

aneiren

There is a twit too? I mean twitter... (sarcasm intended)

What meaningful communication can really happen in the twitter format? Could someone please give me a practical example? Or is it really just a tool to turn like into Mystery Science Theater 3000?

aneiren

... turn Life into... stupid autocorrect...

Jason

Disclaimer - I just read it somewhere...don't remember. Haven't seen it myself.

mjn

While having some domain experience would certainly help manage a project, I don't think it is necessarily required. Project management is a skill-set in it's own right. It calls for organization, attention to detail, guiding and managing people, etc.

While I don't consider myself a professional project manager, I've been tapped to do the job several times over the course of my career (software development). To me, project management is a kind of mind-set. The PM is a bit of a cheerleader urging on the efforts of other people, while not being afraid to step in to do jobs that advance the team towards it's goal. The PM doesn't have to be a machinist, but he (or she) does need to be able to recruit and work with one. He needn't be a programmer, but if the project calls for software control, he needs to understand enough to guide a programmer. Etc.

About a month ago, Marcin asked me to take on the project management of the Steam Engine project. What did I know about steam engines? Essentially nothing. I make no claims to any expertise regarding steam engineering or devices that use steam power. Since it occurs to me that most people in OSE also lack this kind of knowledge, I started collecting information about steam engines. Google Books, the Internet Archives, and many other sources have many, many useful books now out of copyright that contained the distilled wisdom of people 110 years ago who DID have the kind of knowledge we need. I have collected a large set of notes, extractions, diagrams, etc. under Steam Engine Research. Now the point of this is not to boast about how good my work is - it is to point out that good research and notes benefit all. This technique can be applied to ANY OSE project.

Given the number of forum topics on "can OSE build everything from scratch", it is clear that we will be using many commercially produced products for many of the GVCS, especially in their early prototyping phases. Finding sources for such things can be exhausting. I've spent many, many hours looking at sites for piston rings, cylinder liners, etc. While the internet is a powerful tool, working through search results is tedious. Sourcing is a task that could be delegated to members of an OSE project team. If someone can't be found, the PM steps up to do the search.

Personally, I am a strong believer in gathering and writing down the requirements for any project. I have learned the hard way developing software that the lack of requirements will ALWAYS bit you in the ass later. Interestingly, this doesn't seem to be part of the standard OSE project development standards. Some of the requirements are generically defined by OSE: modular, disassemblable, scalable, etc. Others will be specific to the kind of project: board feet per minute for the sawmill, for example. Requirements guide and drive the design process.

Well, I won't belabor the point. Only a few things are really required to do project management well for an OSE project:

* A willingness to devote a LOT of time
* A willingness to step in and do the dirty work - like documentation
* A open, supportive, and inclusive attitude towards others willing to contribute to the project.
* Organization skills
* The drive to see the project through to completion.

- Mark Norton

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