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 Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 12:41 am Post subject: Mandriva at Linuxtag 2009 in Berlin, Germany |
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After a long absence from Linux events in the German region Mandriva decided to participate in this year's Linuxtag Conference & Expo in Berlin, Germany. The Mandriva stand will be held by Mandriva employees, supported by members of the German community MandrivaUser.de. There will be demos of products and answers to questions.
The Linuxtag is the biggest Linux event in Germany (some say, in Europe), attracting not only German exhibitors and visitors but also an international crowd (12% of total visitors). It is a mixed event with all the major companies and many free projects who get free stands, sponsored by the Linuxtag organisation. There will be keynotes, more than 200 talks by speakers from 23 different nations, workshops, hacking contests, etc.
Special attention this year is on France, there will be more than 20 french Linux companies and projects.
http://www.linuxtag.org/2009/en.html
When: June 24 thro June 27, 2009
Where: Berlin, Germany, Messe
Mandriva stand: Hall 7.2b Stand 106
So, if you happen to be around, see us there, I'll be waiting for you!
wobo
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wobo
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 1:13 am Post subject: |
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Excellent news! I hope all goes well  |
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Ahmad_Samir
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 1:34 am Post subject: Re: Mandriva at Linuxtag 2009 in Berlin, Germany |
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| wobo wrote: | | After a long absence from Linux events in the German region Mandriva decided to participate in this year's Linuxtag Conference & Expo in Berlin, Germany. |
Bravo! I'm very glad to hear this.
Now, Dan Lynch and Fabian Scherschel from LinuxOutlaws are supposed to be there. Dan has said good things about Mandriva in the past (believes the distro is unfairly maligned). Fab doesn't really seem to think much of Mandriva one way or another.
The point is, according to Podcastalley.com these guys run a top-10 podcast. If Dan and/or Fab show up at the event, and they have announced plans to be there, it would be super fantabulistic if someone close to Mandriva could buy them a beer and sing the praises of our favorite distribution.
Thanks to Mandriva and all your folks for committing to this event Wobo. I really hope somebody can find it in their schedule to seek out Fab and Dan. I have half a mind to email them and see if I can get them to seek you out.
Wish I could be there.
Viel Glück.
Mark
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Mark_1830
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 3:36 am Post subject: Re: Mandriva at Linuxtag 2009 in Berlin, Germany |
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| Mark_1830 wrote: | | Now, Dan Lynch and Fabian Scherschel from LinuxOutlaws are supposed to be there. Dan has said good things about Mandriva in the past (believes the distro is unfairly maligned). Fab doesn't really seem to think much of Mandriva one way or another. |
Are you in contact with these guys? I'd like to buy them 2 beers as long as they will listen to me 
wobo
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wobo
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 3:44 am Post subject: Re: Mandriva at Linuxtag 2009 in Berlin, Germany |
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| wobo wrote: | | Mark_1830 wrote: | | Now, Dan Lynch and Fabian Scherschel from LinuxOutlaws are supposed to be there. Dan has said good things about Mandriva in the past (believes the distro is unfairly maligned). Fab doesn't really seem to think much of Mandriva one way or another. |
Are you in contact with these guys? I'd like to buy them 2 beers as long as they will listen to me
wobo |
Regrettably no, I am merely a loyal listener. But that won't stop me from leaning on them.
Mark
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Mark_1830
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 3:52 am Post subject: |
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I'll try to contact them and invite them to the Mandriva stand, thx for the hint.
wobo
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wobo
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 4:13 am Post subject: |
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Sorry, I forgot to mention:
Radio Tux (a free internet radio project) will broadcast live from the exhibition. They will do an interview with somebody from Mandriva on one of the first 3 days (in English) and an interview with me (in German) on Saturday. As soon as I know the exact time for the English interview I will post it here with the direct URL
After the show I will extract the Mandriva interviews and upöoad them on our ftp server for those who live in other time zones...
wobo
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wobo
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 1:58 pm Post subject: |
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| Excellent! will be waiting for the radio transmission. |
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Ahmad_Samir
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 4:01 pm Post subject: |
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Looking forward to it Wobo.
Mark
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glyj
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| Posted: Sat Jun 20, 2009 9:41 pm Post subject: |
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| glyj wrote: | I know that I perhaps should'nt post there.... I'm sorry for that  |
I think it's the other way around, you should post there so that as many people in the Linux world read it but I don't think it's an overload on the server, the article seems to have been deleted.... dunno why or how :-/ |
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Ahmad_Samir
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| Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 12:58 am Post subject: |
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I know the reason why this blog entry was erased - which does not mean I know what is going on in Mandriva land! Let me explain and please follow the development of the story.
Here are the facts in detail:
1. In early December 2008 Vanessa Wall (Communication Manager at Mandriva) mailed me and asked me if I could help in finding out everything needed for Mandriva to participate at the Linuxtag 2009. I was in touch with a contact at Messe Berlin (the organisation of the exhibition) and prepared everything (calculation, application).
I also told Mandriva that MandrivaUser will be happy to support Mandriva there.
2. On February 2nd Vanessa told me that Mandriva decided to participate in the exhibition.
3. After that it was very difficult to get replies to my mails. Time was running out for the application but whenever I asked I received the answer that someone had to talk to Hervé and will get back to me the next day - which never came.
So, in April 2nd I went to Paris and talked to Anne Nicolas and Vanessa Wall in person. Both told me that Mandriva will come to the Linuxtag 2009. Before I had offered the help and support of MandrivaUser.de and mine. I told Mandriva that Mandriva will have to pay my hotel room in berlin and my train ticket. During that conversation in Paris Anne and Vanessa told me to book my train ticket and Mandriva will make hotel arrangements.
4. On April 6th Mandriva sent the contract to Messe Berlin. Signed and delivered.
After that I heard nothing from Mandriva, nothing about a hotel reservation, nothing about any activities at the exhibition. I mailed Vanessa but never received any reply.
5. On June 8th, 3 weeks before the event, I received a mail from Vanessa where she told me that she has to see Hervé that day about his approvement and will get back to me after that.
Approvement of what? I thought everything was decided by then. Of course she did not get back to me. When I asked again a week later and another week later she replied on June 15th that I should not send all these mails and that she was annoyed!
That was 8 days before the event and I did not know anything about Mandriva's plans, nor if they had booked a hotel for me or not!
6. On June 18th Mélody - Vanessa's assistent - sent a mail, she had booked a hotel and will tell me the name and address later. Huh? Why did she not give the hotel name right there? I became a bit nervous.
7. On June 19th, Friday afternoon, 4 days before the setup day at the exhibition, Mélody sent a mail to me and Messe Berlin:
| Quote: | our CEO who should be present at the Linux Tag just had an accident.
Therefore, I am really sorry, but we can not attend the event. |
That was also the moment the blog entry was erased. Hervé actually had an accident and broke his leg. Sad but not something which stops a company from working.
Of course I replied to that mail with Anne Nicolas in copy but I never received a reply to that. I contacted Nino from Messe Berlin and he was also surprised by this. He told me that Mandriva will have to pay the full price for the booth nevertheless, according to the contract.
I phoned Anne on Friday afternoon and she said she was also surprised. I told her what Nino had said, that Mandriva must pay anyway. So, if Mandriva really had nobody else to come to Berlin I offered her to come and do the stand at the exhibition for them, only condition is, they have to pay my hotel (which I am sure was never booked before) and that I have to know that until Suturday evening to make my own preparations.
Anne promised to find out and come back during Saturday. She did not. I do not have any reply from her or anybody else up to this moment.
Open questions:
1. I offered the help of the community, why did Mandriva never start to discuss anything about the exhibition during all that time?
2. In any company I ever was, after the decision is made to go to en event, hotel reservations are made early to make sure. Why did Mandriva never make any hotel reservations in Berlin?
3. Before yesterday nobody talked about Hervé being present in Berlin. It was always Anne Nicolas and somebody else.
4. I never heard that a company canceled an exhibition participation just because one person could not come (whatever the reason). Is there really nobody available at Mandriva who could come instead of Hervé ?
And the biggest question of all:
If there really is nobody else available, why is Mandriva rather paying more than 5,000 Euros for an empty booth (for nothing) than letting the community help out?
The sad side of the story:
MandrivaUser.de had a sponsored free booth at the previous 3 Linuxtag events and presented Mandriva Linux there. We could have applied for one this year but decided against it to be able to help and support Mandriva at their booth. Not it is too late for that, of course. So, in this situation Mandriva pays 5,000 Euro, but nobody will see anything of Mandriva at Europe's largest Linux event!
Some MandrivaUser members already made hotel reservations and bought tickets out of their own pockets to be there. I will also go to Berlin on my own expenses and we will have a nice week in Berlin together - without Mandriva and without wearing our Mandriva shirts.
I don't know what really happened at Mandriva and I don't know for sure if I really want to know. The only conclusion I get from all this is: Mandriva does not care to be seen in public and they rather pay for nothing than to receive help from the community.
What this means for my commitment to the whole Mandriva thing? I have to think and talk about that with my friends from MandrivaUser.de.
wobo
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| Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 1:08 am Post subject: |
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wow. i just don't know what to say.
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| Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 1:17 am Post subject: |
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Of course I will have to
- explain this to the print press, I already made an appointment with one magazine to meet us at the Mandriva booth, now I will have to explain why there is no Mandriva booth.
- explain this in my interview with Radio Tux.
- explain this to the Mandriva users, to those who already payed money to help Mandriva and to those who were already looking forward to meet us there.
- explain this to some other projects and two business contacts who were interested to meet Mandriva.
And I will not tell them that Mandriva could not come because the CEO broke his leg! I am not a company employee and I do not have to stick to the company line.
In my personal opinon Mandriva just shot themselves in the foot with a large cannon.
wobo
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David Batson
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| Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 2:37 am Post subject: |
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Still I'd like to get some answers to the open questions! I will not do anything in Mandriva's favor, not even promote it anywhere before these questions are answered. And I will not accept anything in the line of "we were too busy because we are only few".
Can you imagine how frustrating it is, being on the phone with someone who tells you he will get back to you while you know there is only a 50% chance that he will really do?
I think I'll better go to sleep, I'm furious now!
wobo
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wobo
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| Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 2:56 am Post subject: |
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If I was in your shoes Wobo, I would be fuming! 
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| Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 6:12 am Post subject: |
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| Interesting. They still have their logo and link here. |
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teknokraft
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| Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 6:15 am Post subject: |
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| Since that link changes, look under French Partner here. |
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teknokraft
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| Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 6:26 am Post subject: |
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Well, strictly speaking the mail from an assistant of communication to Linuxtag has no legal meaning. There is a signed contract and until Mandriva does not cancel this in writing the situation for the Messe Berlin GmbH has not changed. And even if Mandriva cancels the contract in writing, they still have to pay in full according to the contract.
That's why the logo is still showing.
In a way Mandriva even supports some free project which may get the space for free if Mandriva does not show up. It may even be a Ubuntu or Opensuse sub-project which will benefit from Mandriva's money The worst which can happen is that the stand remains empty, showing the Mandriva name. People who don't know Mandriva will just pass by and think what company leaves their stand all empty. To the people who know the name Mandriva it will be a clear signal. And guess what I will tell those who will ask....
wobo
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| Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 8:08 am Post subject: |
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Does that mean this is the end of the company ?
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glyj
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| Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 8:20 am Post subject: |
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| wobo wrote: | In a way Mandriva even supports some free project which may get the space for free if Mandriva does not show up. It may even be a Ubuntu or Opensuse sub-project which will benefit from Mandriva's money The worst which can happen is that the stand remains empty, showing the Mandriva name. People who don't know Mandriva will just pass by and think what company leaves their stand all empty. To the people who know the name Mandriva it will be a clear signal. And guess what I will tell those who will ask....
wobo |
Yep.
Y'know, I was just thinking, how about you just step on over to 'buntu's stand, and let them know how much you think of how they communicate with their people, their users, etc. ... kinda,,,, send a very clear signal...
Man, wobo, this is bad, for you, but at the same time, could Mandriva maybe be getting a kick in the pants that they need? Nah, that's too simple. They wouldn't pay attention anyway. 
It was right to want to send Herve Yahi, but what I can't see is them not taking up on an offer from you to represent them when it turned out he couldn't attend. Something's not right here, and doesn't make sense. Mandriva can't afford to lose that much money right now.
None of this makes any sense at all. Do they just not have any common sense, or what? |
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teknokraft
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| Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 10:53 am Post subject: |
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| teknokraft wrote: | | None of this makes any sense at all. |
Exactly this is my opinion, apart from all the anger and frustration. I would understand if it would make any sense in favour of Mandriva or any other reason. But as of now, it does not make any sense to me, no matter from which side you look at it
Echoes from the German community about this: Mostly speechless. One user smells something, as if they did not really mean to come and believe that they don't have to pay when they cancel the contract.
One of our RPM packagers wrote, "It is a fact that we can not plan anything togehter with Mandriva in the future. We can't afford another desaster like this. It will have to be: We here, Mandriva there. Division, no communication if not needed."
I tend to agree. We have a good name in Germany as Open Source community and we can not afford to let Mandriva destroy this reputation.
@Technokraft: If I change community it will not be ubuntuusers, it will be Fedora - I do have some contacts there and they are only waiting (so I heard).
Well, for once I'd really like to see how it is when a company actually collaborates with the community.
wobo
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| Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 11:20 am Post subject: |
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Some information:
Whoever happens to come to Berlin, each exhibition day I will be at the entrance right after you pass the ticket controllers, on opening time + 30 minutes and at 12:30. There will be some German users coming, so we needed to set a meeting place and time.
wobo
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| Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 1:12 pm Post subject: |
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Ladislav Bodnar -the distrowatch editor- will also be there in Berlin.
He wanted -among others - to meet mandriva guys and report about it in the DWW
I'll inform him about this.
This is sad, very sad...... we need answers to all those questions.
"What will be my next distro ?" is my last question....
 
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