[Koha] Message from PTFS/LibLime

[MJ Ray]

John Yokley <jyokley at ptfs.com> wrote: [...]
> The HLT Koha Committee was established as holding body for the Koha project
> property.  [...]

No.  Others have corrected this error and I thank them for it.

I'd like to suggest it's this sort of callous misdescription of the
actions of others, combined with things such as vague threats of legal
action and domain-squatting amongst other things as "standard
operating procedure" which has encouraged such a dim view of PTFS and
LibLime after so many users had such high hopes of the PTFS takeover.
I hope that helps inform PTFS why they aren't loved any more.

> In this regards, LibLime will help organize and fund the creation of a Koha
> Software Foundation as a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation. [...]

Huh?  This seems to be ignoring that LibLime has *already* organised
and funded the creation of a Koha Software Foundation in Ohio!
Registration number 1839255 created 26 Feb 2009, but no-one else knows
what its rules are, community participants have asked after that
foundation and not got a useful answer, and so on and so on.

What is the situation with that foundation and how can it be turned
over to the community?  Does it have to be a 501(c)3?  The US's
charity law isn't all that great and its banking system is awful.
Could it be an association rather than a foundation?

I really hope that the Koha Community is not further delayed by this
new history-ignoring PTFS initiative.

> LibLime officially requests that interested parties contact us who are
> interested in helping to create and manage this foundation.  

OK, please regard this as contact on behalf of software.coop in trust
for the wider Koha Community.

[...]
> Our decisions on how LibLime will continue to proceed in the Koha project
> will continue to be based upon communications we receive, proposals to
> support the Koha Foundation and acceptance of our organization as a viable
> part of the community to help Koha become the world’s best ILS.

I really don't regard it as reasonable to expect proposals of support
for LibLime's Koha Software Foundation when we know so little about it!

Personally, I'm sure my proposal for acceptance of PTFS as part of the
community has been outlined before:

 1. retract the threats of legal action;

 2. turn community assets over to common ownership;

 3. stop issuing sermons from on high and get involved in the
    long-standing community processes like other vendors do.

I look forward to any progress in that direction.

Best wishes,
-- 
MJ Ray (slef), member of www.software.coop, a for-more-than-profit co-op.
Webmaster, Debian Developer, Past Koha RM, statistician, former lecturer.
In My Opinion Only: see http://mjr.towers.org.uk/email.html
Available for hire for Koha work http://www.software.coop/products/koha