So now that Novell has been sold, and the dividiing lines are being drawn (SuSE, Novell, etc.) where does openSUSE (and these forums) fit into the picture? Is it going to be sponsored by the Novell branch or the SUSE branch? What about the forums?
What got me thinking about this, is this article:
Layoffs begin at Novell’s Utah base
Attachmate, fresh from completing the deal to acquire Novell, has begun a process of laying off staff from Novell’s Provo, Utah, campus. According to reports, around 700 to 800 employees are being laid off. Jeff Hawn, CEO of Attachmate, said in a statement that “inevitably with these kinds of complex acquisitions there will be some workforce reductions. These changes will affect employees internationally, not just in Utah.” Sources say the layoffs include several dozen US-based SUSE staff involved in product management, support and ISV collaboration.
I think some of the forum staff is located there. I’m not sure if they are effected or not, or how this is all panning out.
Hi dragonbite,
If I am referring to this interview : Attachmate reveals Novell, SUSE, & Linux Plans | ZDNet
It is said that :
SUSE sponsorship and participation in key open-source projects is a fundamental element of the business. This commitment is driven by a desire to contribute to and collaborate with the community in a way that fosters the success of open source technologies overall and creates the greatest value for our customers. The openSUSE project is a great example of vibrant and healthy collaboration. SUSE sponsorship and participation in projects like openSUSE creates great value for the community and also for SUSE customers who benefit from the innovations and advancements we create together.
So I presume openSUSE fit in the SUSE branch and not on Novell branch anymore.
Probably a good thing, at least in light of the layoffs in Utah.
On 05/03/2011 09:36 PM, dragonbite wrote:
>
> Probably a good thing, at least in light of the layoffs in Utah.
do we know anyone who got a pink slip?
hope not, most i’ve contact with are ‘good guys’…
–
CAVEAT: http://is.gd/bpoMD
[openSUSE 11.3 + KDE4.5.5 + Thunderbird3.1.8 via NNTP]
HACK Everything → http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5b4CCe9pS8&NR=1
openSUSE definitely fits under the SUSE business unit umbrella. As you’ve seen before in Attachmate statements they (we) are committed to the openSUSE project. Support services will be a shared service between the 4 business units (Attachmate, Novell, SUSE, NetIQ) so I imagine there won’t be significant change for the forums except that, perhaps, I can see moving all of the SUSE forums from NOVELL FORUMS and adding them here. I don’t know…we’re not that far down the road yet.
Compare also the descriptions of the four divisions or companies on
Our Companies: The Attachmate Group, Inc.
(just guessing)
On 05/04/2011 04:06 PM, kgroneman wrote:
>
> …we’re not that far down the road yet.
for you, i know the road is uphill…but we are cheering you on!
–
CAVEAT: http://is.gd/bpoMD
[openSUSE11.3 + KDE4.5.5 + Firefox3.6.17 + Thunderbird3.1.10 via NNTP]
HACK Everything → http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5b4CCe9pS8&NR=1
On Wed, 04 May 2011 08:29:53 +0000, DenverD wrote:
> On 05/03/2011 09:36 PM, dragonbite wrote:
>>
>> Probably a good thing, at least in light of the layoffs in Utah.
>
> do we know anyone who got a pink slip? hope not, most i’ve contact with
> are ‘good guys’…
We do, the cuts were deep and hard, especially here in Utah. I was one
of those who was laid off; my last day was today.
The good news is the prospects look good, and I’ve already got some very
good leads - I could be back to work in a few weeks’ time and be doing
some pretty exciting stuff.
I have no plans currently to leave the openSUSE Forums, either - though I
may well be a little less visible as I have a higher priority - that of
paying the bills - that I need to take care of in the short term.
But for now, pizza. 
Jim
Jim Henderson
openSUSE Forums Administrator
Forum Use Terms & Conditions at http://tinyurl.com/openSUSE-T-C
Jim It’s the 5th of May… you need to be having Mexican food…not
pizza 
–
Cheers Malcolm °¿° (Linux Counter #276890)
openSUSE 11.4 (x86_64) Kernel 2.6.37.6-0.5-desktop
up 2 days 10:56, 3 users, load average: 0.03, 0.09, 0.08
GPU GeForce 8600 GTS Silent - Driver Version: 270.41.06
On Fri, 06 May 2011 03:19:35 +0000, malcolmlewis wrote:
>
> Jim It’s the 5th of May… you need to be having Mexican food…not
> pizza
LOL
Actually, we had planned on making homemade curry, but it got too late so
we decided that we deserved to order pizza.
Jim
–
Jim Henderson
openSUSE Forums Administrator
Forum Use Terms & Conditions at http://tinyurl.com/openSUSE-T-C
On 05/06/2011 05:16 AM, Jim Henderson wrote:
>
>
> I was one of those who was laid off; my last day was today.
best always…let us know when you have landed on your feet!!
–
CAVEAT: http://is.gd/bpoMD
[openSUSE11.3 + KDE4.5.5 + Firefox3.6.17 + Thunderbird3.1.10 via NNTP]
HACK Everything → http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5b4CCe9pS8&NR=1
On Fri, 06 May 2011 07:48:55 +0000, DenverD wrote:
> On 05/06/2011 05:16 AM, Jim Henderson wrote:
>>
>>
>> I was one of those who was laid off; my last day was today.
>
> best always…let us know when you have landed on your feet!!
Thanks - will do.
Jim
–
Jim Henderson
openSUSE Forums Administrator
Forum Use Terms & Conditions at http://tinyurl.com/openSUSE-T-C
This is promising/good news and we all have our fingers crossed for you.
This is also very good news ! 
Good luck with things Jim, - good news that you’re not leaving openSUSE, - your time and effort spent here are deeply appreciated.
This looks to be beneficial to opensuse to me. The take over and tumbleweed may allow opensuse to return completely to it’s original niche in the market place, relatively stable releases. Where people want to be nearer the cutting edge tumbleweed can provide it. Taking the cynical view that opensuse is really a test bed for enterprise level software that sort of arrangement still makes good commercial sense The “stable” versions still have problems of one sort or another that take longer to detect and iron out. At some point the newer stuff also needs testing etc. This sort of arrangement is ideal for all types of users and is sure to increase suse’s user base. My impression is that currently it is no where near as large as it was despite an increase in US based users once Novell took it over. Shakes head in amazement - I’ve always wondered why that happened but having had dealings with Novell in the past maybe I’m biased.
It’s always sad to see buy outs and job losses, patents being acquired and probably one of the main reasons etc but at least in this case suse seems to be remaining on it’s own. This may or may not be of advantage to us. We will all just have to wait and see. Personally I would like to see a return to the days when @suse.de turned up in mailing lists and on forums from time to time. Some of those people even invested their own time in sorting out the inevitable problems that crop up now and again. Some were even prepared to explain why things had gone that way. You may gather that I was somewhat dismayed by Novell’s take over. The results for me were as expected but on the bright side do seem to have improved somewhat over the years. Lets hope the new lot do not have to follow the same learning curve.
On Fri, 06 May 2011 14:36:02 +0000, oldcpu wrote:
> hendersj;2335727 Wrote:
>>
>> The good news is the prospects look good, and I’ve already got some
>> very good leads - I could be back to work in a few weeks’ time and be
>> doing some pretty exciting stuff.
>>
> This is promising/good news and we all have our fingers crossed for you.
Thanks, Lee - I’m very encouraged, Novell have given me a pretty good
severance package and are providing outplacement services for all those
who were laid off as well. What I’ve found so far has just been through
my personal/professional networks and referrals from people I worked with
at Novell. It looks like I’m going to have several good options to
choose from, so I’m going to take a few weeks and really consider them
carefully and find the right fit. We’re financially in a place where I
could take probably 4-5 months, but I’d go stir crazy if it took that
long - and the market is good in Utah and in several other areas right
now (I noticed a large number of billboards while driving home from Provo
yesterday advertising jobs at a number of companies - mostly development
jobs, but still, those weren’t there earlier in the week).
> hendersj;2335727 Wrote:
>> I have no plans currently to leave the openSUSE Forums, either
>
> This is also very good news !
Jim
–
Jim Henderson
openSUSE Forums Administrator
Forum Use Terms & Conditions at http://tinyurl.com/openSUSE-T-C
On Fri, 06 May 2011 14:45:15 +0000, Kanoe wrote:
> Good luck with things Jim, - good news that you’re not leaving openSUSE,
> - your time and effort spent here are deeply appreciated.
Thanks!
Jim
–
Jim Henderson
openSUSE Forums Administrator
Forum Use Terms & Conditions at http://tinyurl.com/openSUSE-T-C
On Fri, 06 May 2011 15:06:01 +0000, ajohnw wrote:
> This looks to be beneficial to opensuse to me. The take over and
> tumbleweed may allow opensuse to return completely to it’s original
> niche in the market place, relatively stable releases. Where people want
> to be nearer the cutting edge tumbleweed can provide it. Taking the
> cynical view that opensuse is really a test bed for enterprise level
> software that sort of arrangement still makes good commercial sense The
> “stable” versions still have problems of one sort or another that take
> longer to detect and iron out. At some point the newer stuff also needs
> testing etc. This sort of arrangement is ideal for all types of users
> and is sure to increase suse’s user base. My impression is that
> currently it is no where near as large as it was despite an increase in
> US based users once Novell took it over. Shakes head in amazement - I’ve
> always wondered why that happened but having had dealings with Novell in
> the past maybe I’m biased.
I was at Novell when SuSE was acquired by Novell, and it was a pretty
exciting time, at least in the training department (which is where I
worked). I do think there were missteps in pushing the product, but
Novell has never been known (and I’ve worked with Novell products since
1989) as a company that could effectively market anything. They have
always been a great technology company, but honestly, the only really
good marketing I ever saw come out was after John Dragoon was hired - but
his focus was strongly towards the decision makers by writing articles
for Forbes and (I think) CIO magazine and things like that - things that
most techs don’t read regularly.
I also have had the pleasure of working directly with John on a couple of
things, and he is very personable and interesting to talk to. I was
impressed when, at a BrainShare a few years ago, when we had him come
talk to the Novell CNIs at our summit on Sunday before the show, he saw
me at lunch later in the week and excused himself from talking to his
customers, came over, greeted me by name, shook my hand, and asked how he
did on Sunday. I know that without a doubt, he made out well (like all
the executives) when he left the company when the deal closed, and he’s
one I feel really earned it (but I have not a lot of problem with how
most of them made out - though I wish I could’ve had their golden
parachutes. 
)
> It’s always sad to see buy outs and job losses, patents being acquired
> and probably one of the main reasons etc but at least in this case suse
> seems to be remaining on it’s own. This may or may not be of advantage
> to us. We will all just have to wait and see. Personally I would like to
> see a return to the days when @suse.de turned up in mailing lists and on
> forums from time to time. Some of those people even invested their own
> time in sorting out the inevitable problems that crop up now and again.
> Some were even prepared to explain why things had gone that way. You may
> gather that I was somewhat dismayed by Novell’s take over. The results
> for me were as expected but on the bright side do seem to have improved
> somewhat over the years. Lets hope the new lot do not have to follow the
> same learning curve.
Some of what I heard the few days after I was told I was being let go
(because I asked to be permitted to hand stuff off, so I worked through
Thursday evening) was very encouraging. I’ve said it before - I think
Novell an SUSE have a bright future ahead of them; what I saw and heard
from the new management team (directly or indirectly) is that the team
has a very strong focus and they’re willing to make decisions that focus
them on doing very good things for customers. Of course, we’ll all see
how it plays out in practice, but the “theory” that I heard was
encouraging, and for me personally, it just stinks that I’m not going to
be there to participate in it directly.
That said, though, I was being trained to move into management, and while
it’s a little sooner than I’d planned on, I’m ready, and was going to
look for opportunities to start managing a team internally in the next
few months - the search focus is now external (out of necessity), and
things are looking good.
Jim
–
Jim Henderson
openSUSE Forums Administrator
Forum Use Terms & Conditions at http://tinyurl.com/openSUSE-T-C
Glad to hear you have prospects! One of the few good things about being laid off is giving yourself time to think about what you WANT to do, and if there are any changes it’s the perfect time!
Good luck, and hope your prospects pan out. Glad to hear Novell is being responsible and helping.