[Python-Dev] Belated introduction

[rdmurray at bitdance.com]

I've been watching the threads about tracker maintenance and patch
review with interest.  I'm afraid that I did not follow the list
recommendation to introduce myself when I first started posting, partly
because I initially jumped in on something that was a bit of a hot
button issue for me :)

So, a little belatedly, here is my intro.  I've been coding in and
loving Python since 1993 or thereabouts.  I am currently an independent
IT consultant, with specialization in IP networking (especially Cisco),
Lunix and Unix system administration, and systems integration.  It is in
my systems integration work that I make heavy use of Python, writing
scripts and programs to tie systems together and/or add needed
functionality.

In my previous life I was Director of Technology for an ISP, and at one
stage we were heavy into web site development.  At that time I worked
with the Zope community quite a bit, and made some contributions to the
beginnings of Zope3.  So for at least a few people this might be more of
a re-introduction.

I've decided that this year I would like to get more involved in the
Python community.  As another poster said, I'm looking forward to the
opportunity to work with and learn from some very smart people.  And
then there's the satisfaction of giving back to a community that has
given me so much over the years, by producing such a delightful language
in which to do my coding.

So, I've been reading the developer docs, setting up a bzr checkout,
learning how to compile a debug python and run tests, wandering around
in the source code, etc, etc.

My thought about how I could best contribute at the present time is to
help out with reviewing tracker issues.  I actually updated the open
tracker issue with the oldest last activity date this morning, as a sort
of trial run.  Unless someone wants to suggest a different way for me to
contribute (I'm open to any suggestions), I'll probably continue through
the list in reverse order of last update date and cherry pick things
that interest me and that I think I can make some sort of contribution to.

Don't hesitate to let me know if I miss etiquette points (gently, please
:).

Oh, and I'll be at pycon this year (my second pycon, the first was
several years back), and look forward to hanging out with a cool bunch
of people :)

--RDM