How Can Novices Participate in the OSI Lists? (was Re: public? Re: Call for Votes: New OSI-Editors List)

[Zak Greant]

Hi Grayg,

I believe that it is fairly easy for novices to participate in a
helpful and mutually beneficial way.

* Read one (or more) of the lists to build your knowledge
* Study the various rules, processes, etc. around the list
* Help newcomers to the list solve problems with your knowledge

For example, if someone comes to the list with a malformed license
approval request, you might study the license submission process and
help them make a better submission.

Other common ways help and become more expert include:
 * writing concise weekly summaries of the activities on a mailing list
 * answering common questions as a way to build your skill (while
freeing up time for more experienced community member)

Also, if you hang around for a while, you will almost certainly find
that there is something valuable that someone no longer has time to
do. If you have near enough to the experience, you can offer to take
the task over.

-- 
Cheers!
--zak