Introduction

  • What name do you go by?
  • How do you identify your gender?
  • How would you describe what you do right now?

Your trajectory and position in FOSS

  • Why did you get into OS development?
  • What is your educational background?
  • What projects are you most involved in?
    • For those projects: What is your role?
    • How long have you been doing that?
    • How did you get involved?
    • Are you part of a team, and if so, how big is it?
  • Have you had major involvement with other FOSS projects in the past? Which projects, and in what capacity?
  • How does your OS work interact with your day job? Is the balance where you’d like it?
  • How are you supporting yourself, if not by working on the project?

Your outlook on FOSS

  • What’s your favorite part of your work?
  • What’s your least favorite part of your work?
  • What do you perceive as the most important OS digital infrastructure projects out there? Why?

Governance & Management

  • What are the communities that you would describe yourself as a part of?
  • How did the last person join your project?
  • How did the last person leave your project?
  • How do you define “contributor” to your project? Where do your contributors come from?
  • Is there anybody who isn’t coding who is a member of your core team?
  • Who is not on your team/community but should be?
  • Are there structures about decision-making in your project/area?
  • What was the biggest challenge in your current project/area?
  • Can you tell me about a time that a conflict occurred in your project? What happened?
  • How do you share knowledge in your project/area?
  • Do you have a mentor? Do you see yourself as a mentor?
  • Have you ever met people on your project face-to-face?
  • What conferences do you attend for your work?

Support

  • Where does your project get its funding and support from?
  • What kind of non-monetary support does the project get?
  • Do you need more support? If so, for what?
  • Is there anybody you wouldn’t accept support from? Why not?
  • Have you ever applied for/received funding? How did that work out for you?

Standards

For standards people

  • Did you ever comment or write up an RFC? How did that work for you?
  • Do you talk to people who are using protocols and standards you are contributing to? Is there a feedback loop?

For developers

  • How does standardization impact your project if applicable?
  • What other projects or code bases does your project rely on?
  • Do you provide feedback on (discussions about) standards?

For implementers and service providers

  • What are some roadblocks for you when implementing code?
  • How does standardization impact your project, if applicable?
  • Do you ever give feedback about standards? To whom?
  • What other projects or code bases does your project rely on?

Values

  • Do you see your work as political? Why/why not?
  • Do you see yourself as an activist? Why/why not?
  • How do you describe your OS work – is it a job, a hobby…?
  • What does “open” mean to you? In what ways are your projects open, in what ways less so?
  • Do you keep track of your time worked on FOSS?
  • What keeps you up at night?

Your project’s state & outlook

  • What does your work mean to you?
  • What effect do you think your work has on society?
  • What do you wish more people knew about your work?
  • Do you think your project/area is sustainable? What are your role models for sustainable FOSS infrastructure?
  • What is your best-case scenario for your project/area in 5 years? What is your worst-case scenario?