SimpleDesk

SimpleDesk! => News and Announcements => Archived News => Topic started by: cσσкιє мσηѕтєя on August 06, 2010, 02:30:43 PM

Title: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: cσσкιє мσηѕтєя on August 06, 2010, 02:30:43 PM
Dear users of SimpleDesk,

As you may or may not have noticed, there has been a recent lack of public updates about SimpleDesk 1.1.
This is in large part due to the departure of our lead developer (http://www.simpledesk.net/community/simpledesk-team-blog/for-whom-bell-tolls...-782.0.html), as well as a lack of time and motivation among the members of our team.

Since the beginning of this project we've laid out a path for SimpleDesk's future, but during the development of 1.1, we started to take several different side tracks, adding new features and improvements that we didn't originally intend.
This leads to 1.1 being a much change version than we originally intended, and there are of course both good and bad sides to that fact.

Due to lack of motivation (related to real life), which I already mentioned, I partially left the project during the course of the latest version, leaving Arantor basically alone for that whole time.
I am now trying to get back on track, so that SimpleDesk may once again flourish. Bᵃ from the marketing team has kindly offered to help me out with development which means that I am not fully alone.
And I'd like to thank all of our beta testers and of course you users who have patiently held on to us during these tough times.

What I'm trying to say is though SimpleDesk is behind schedule (Our original release date for 1.1 was the 1st of July, I won't keep that a secret), and though we lost our biggest contributor, all is not lost.
We're looking forward to a public release within the coming couple of months. And oh, new promotional graphics, of course! ;D
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: ~DS~ on August 06, 2010, 03:31:07 PM
Right behind you Nas, and the SD team. :)
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: tfs on August 07, 2010, 12:18:36 PM
In the immortal words of Alan Shepard, let's light this candle!  :)
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: [FailSafe] on August 09, 2010, 01:32:50 AM
Quote from: Dismal Shadow on August 06, 2010, 03:31:07 PM
Right behind you Nas, and the SD team. :)

Seconded.

Anyway I can help? SimpleDesk is still one of the best projects out there for SMF, IMO, and if there is anyway I can contribute to help keep the ball rolling please let me know.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: chilly on August 09, 2010, 03:25:27 AM
Quote from: [FailSafe] on August 09, 2010, 01:32:50 AM
Anyway I can help? SimpleDesk is still one of the best projects out there for SMF, IMO, and if there is anyway I can contribute to help keep the ball rolling please let me know.

/me agrees
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: Acans on August 09, 2010, 05:38:12 AM
Looking forward to it :)
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: live627 on August 15, 2010, 10:52:32 PM
so now there is one person labeled as a dev actually working on the project, like other SMF projects
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: [FailSafe] on August 16, 2010, 12:01:13 AM
I can understand why development here would come to crawl then. Arantor has left the team, and has been gone from SMF for a while. JBlaze resigned as Customizer on SMF. And Nas is busy with development of SMF (which obviously comes first). I kind of feel bad for him, balancing so many projects at once.

As for some of the other teamies here....Trekkie101 is On Haitus. SleePy is...well, yeah, SleePy is still active on SMF. B hasn't bee active on SMF as far as I can see in the public boards. (He might be posting on the private boards, and his last active date is still pretty recent, but he still doesn't post a lot on the private boards). It seems that hades has left the team. Though the QA people still seem kind of active from what their profiles say, but I haven't checked the Tracker in a while so I can't tell if they have been active there.

Please note, that i'm just sharing my observation on what the status of the team is. This may not accurately reflect what is going on in private on here, or on the actual SMF community site.

I mean, there are people here who'd love to help support this project, but not many have the ability to code. At least, code well enough to contribute as a developer to the project. Some do, but i'm not sure if they'd be willing to take on the project.

I been thinking lately that it might be helpful to make module development for SD public for other people to work on it, but in actuality i'm not sure that would help much. What is needed is core development kick start of the project. Since there people in the community who would love to help with the project and since 1.1 is a feature-heavy release, maybe getting together "Community Developer Helpers" (or a better name than that) who are assigned a feature to work on as a group. And then send it to Nas or someone else to review, polish, and then commit. This way all Nas has to do is just polish up existing code for features instead of working on his own, which will allow him to spend more time doing other things.

Bah, i'm just tossing ideas out right now. At least it's something.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: hadesflames on August 16, 2010, 05:07:18 AM
I don't think it wise to give random people commit access =/
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: chilly on August 16, 2010, 05:57:24 AM
what if that people only read and do not commit to the same place but a trunk or something? haven't used svn much yet so i can't tell if it's possible to manage rights like that. else they just should not be able to commit but submit their code elsewhere so it can be reviewed.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: hadesflames on August 16, 2010, 07:10:59 AM
Even so, what are they going to commit? If they can't see the latest rev, they're of no use...
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: chilly on August 16, 2010, 07:53:51 AM
I'm sure you can give rights to see the latest rev but not to commit new stuff.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: [FailSafe] on August 16, 2010, 02:32:50 PM
Quote from: hadesflames on August 16, 2010, 05:07:18 AM
I don't think it wise to give random people commit access =/

No, in my idea they do not have the ability to commit. They start building for a feature, and once they are done they send it to a dev to review. Then the dev cleans it up, and the dev himself commits it.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: Spoogs on August 16, 2010, 06:28:26 PM
I'm sure Nas would be open to a few ideas. I have wondered myself if something similar to what [FailSafe] suggest would work.

I know Nas will do his best to keep the project alive and I'm almost certain no one wants to see it die. Fact is Nas is very busy and has a lot on his plate so I'm sure he needs the help but it would have to be stable help. The guy is pretty young and bless him for taking on so much but it just isnt right that he should spend his every waking moment in front of his PC. I personally wish i could help with the coding side things to give him a hand but I'm a moron to coding.

As much as i would love to see this project pick up steam once again, I just dont see it fair for the guy to burn himself out. Maybe he can pull some strings, call in a few favors and get the 'A' back on the project as well as a few more capable hands.

Its really a shame to see such an awesome project on life support.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: Bᵃ on August 17, 2010, 05:43:02 PM
Unfortunately, immediately following my offer to help, I moved to a new apartment. :) The move itself is not unfortunate, merely the fact that it has hindered me from working on SD as much as I would have liked. Give me another week or so, and I should be good to go.

B
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: Spoogs on August 17, 2010, 06:30:27 PM
Conhgrats on the new place B

Get settled and come on back ;)
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: Bᵃ on August 17, 2010, 06:41:46 PM
Thanks! Will do. :D

B
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: [FailSafe] on August 19, 2010, 02:15:50 AM
I know what a move to an apartment is like secondhand from my brother, but I can tell that it can get kind of crazy. Best of luck with the new place, B. :)

And spoogs, there is still the idea of creating modules for SD. I can't really code all that well either, but at least it's better than nothing. Some development is better than no development. And I think we can all agree that we'd rather not see Nas overextend himself by trying to add SimpleDesk coding to this list of things that need to be done. So rather than have that, i'm sure that the Staff that is still left can try to whip up some minor things to help push things along. At least until things slow down for Nas.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: Spoogs on August 26, 2010, 09:02:46 PM
The silence is so deafening :P

At this point I'm just about willing to pay for a few things
1. Departments - I think this is needed to maximize the use of roles
2. Escalations
3. Board Integration
4. Custom Form (add-on)

I know everyone is busy with all sorts of things.... but can we not find some Devs or helpers for the project.? I'd rather a few folks fighting over which code makes more sense than nothing at all ;D

Seriously tho guys... what can we do to get this off life support?

Maybe keep the current version as the lite version... thro in the above 4 in a subscription based version (yeah i know u guys dont want money)

:(     :(     :(     :(

Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: [FailSafe] on August 28, 2010, 08:47:58 PM
I'd be willing to help. I don't know much about code, but it's better than the standstill that's happening now. And I say that anyone that wants to help, code expert or not, should be able to help to. Basically like the direction that Youra has taken for their project, because I don't see any other way that development can get going.

As for a paid version, I say no. There is no reason to split off the project into different versions, there is not enough manpower to do it, and it's not like there is any kind of support-prevention needed.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: Spoogs on August 29, 2010, 06:15:51 PM
I'd prefer that SD remains a free project but we're at such a standstill I'm just throwing things at the wall to see what sticks :P
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: Senkusha on August 29, 2010, 08:24:58 PM
Wow, I leave for a little bit to start college, and ... things fall apart?

Um, Mind if I ask what happened?

I'm fairly okay at PHP, and currently have no job, so... maybe I could help out with some little things at first?
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: tfs on August 29, 2010, 08:49:35 PM
Quote from: Senkusha on August 29, 2010, 08:24:58 PM
Wow, I leave for a little bit to start college, and ... things fall apart?

Um, Mind if I ask what happened?

I'm fairly okay at PHP, and currently have no job, so... maybe I could help out with some little things at first?

Death of SimpleDesk haiku:

Arantor quit.
That was the end.
Very sad.


I'd be willing to pay also.  After investing several months in the project, putting together a dozen test forums, even telling my employer (and a couple of clients) that I'd be showing him/them a nice surprise in a new help desk for us, only to have it evaporate less than a month before scheduled unveiling, I've lost some of my trust in freeware... at least in a business environment.  I have no beef with Arantor... it was always part of the arrangement that we're free to come and go.  That's the nature of free software.

If I could resurrect this project I'd do it.  But as we all saw, it needs a top notch programmer to immerse him or herself into it.  That's not me.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: Sordell Media on August 29, 2010, 09:05:42 PM
I could possibly help out a bit code-wise, I'm just not sure I'm familiar enough with SMF's codebase to be of much use. I've also (like most of us it seems) got several projects of my own being worked on, so couldnt contribute masses of time.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: Spoogs on August 29, 2010, 09:34:00 PM
I've tried bumping the PT a bit, that worked for a little (could have been unrelated to my bumping tho).

Unfortunately those of us willing to help are the ones with little to no coding skill. I dont know where $$ would fit in the picture but I'm willing to pay for this. With the release of 1.0 and the road-map given I had started tailoring my site accordingly because SD is something i could really use (it actually has most of the features I use to bug Arantor about as far as mods... with SD 1.0 I was able to ditch a few mods that never equated to a fraction of what SD can do)

Nonetheless i want in patience in hopes that this project will survive... a few competent coders are definitely needed to keep the heartbeat.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: [FailSafe] on August 30, 2010, 02:34:37 PM
Quote from: tfs on August 29, 2010, 08:49:35 PM
If I could resurrect this project I'd do it.  But as we all saw, it needs a top notch programmer to immerse him or herself into it.  That's not me.

I think that with all of us working together we could reach a fairly decent level of programming. It may take longer, and it may not be the level that Arantor, Nas, or JBlaze has, but i'm sure that we can all still pull our own.

Some of the Beta Testers on there that i've seen (especially tfs) have an amazing work ethic. Sure, we may not have the skills yet, but it's our passion for this project that will drive us.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: Gruffen on August 31, 2010, 11:37:16 AM
:(

Software, to flourish, needs a reason to thrive. For paid programmers, payment is often enough. But for those who enjoy programming, no amount of payment in the world equates to the love a programmer has for their work, and when that's gone, nothing will bring it back.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: Bugo on October 14, 2010, 03:18:25 AM
(https://www.simpledesk.net/sd/release.png)
Is SimpleDesk dead?
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: Spoogs on October 14, 2010, 03:36:44 AM
On life support in need of capable developers, but the plug hasnt been pulled.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: chilly on October 14, 2010, 04:32:02 AM
is there a way we might get the newest build and have a look at the code? maybe we can help with some stuff
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: tfs on October 14, 2010, 02:16:07 PM
The team is currently discussing advertising for a new lead developer to hopefully step into Arantor's position as lead developer.  I think there'll be some movement in this regard in the next few days.  None of us wants to see SimpleDesk fade away.  It's an extremely useful and valuable tool on so many levels.

Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: chilly on October 14, 2010, 03:32:55 PM
yes it is!
I just asked for that code so I might look into SD as is at the moment to check if I could see myself doing some of the coding. At least some of the smaller "jobs" to help getting this forward. (to see if I can handle SD I wouldn't need the newest build but to check if I can do some of the missing stuff)
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: Gruffen on October 15, 2010, 08:29:38 AM
Wait a minute... beta testers don't have access to the development builds? That surely can't help a project.
Title: Re: The future of the SimpleDesk project
Post by: cσσкιє мσηѕтєя on October 15, 2010, 08:57:19 AM
Quote from: Gruffen on October 15, 2010, 08:29:38 AM
Wait a minute... beta testers don't have access to the development builds? That surely can't help a project.

They do have access to daily SVN builds, in fact..