MAR
12
2001

Charles Samuels

A Short Intro

  • Located in: San Jose, California, USA
  • Occupation: Student, coder
  • Nickname on IRC: Njaard
  • Claim to Fame: Noatun, KDE 2.1's media player
  • Fav. KDE applications: Konqueror (of course), and KMail
  • Hardware: "Fat Man", a dual Pentium 2 300

The Interview

What is your role within KDE?

I mainly write Noatun http://noatun.kde.org/ (and all the stuff related to that). I'm supposed to maintain a couple kdelibs classes, but I don't really.

How do you pronounce noatun?

People ask me this question a lot, that's why a good friend of my, Jason, made this .ogg file

How and when did you get involved in KDE?

It was January of 2000, and I asked David Faure if he needed any help, and he said yes. So for the next couple weeks, I was adding KAboutData to all the KDE apps.

How much time do you spend on KDE?

Too much, really. About 20 hours a week.

What is your favorite tool? (for developers; what is your favorite editor?)

Vim for editing, however, gcc does come in handy for compiling now and again.

Is there a process you follow when you design/write code/translate/write documentation?

I usually create all the headers and classes, and try to produce something that will work if I fill in all the functions, the app won't compile for quite a while. About designing or writing documentation: it would be a very bad idea for me to do either of those :)

What was your first computer?

It was one of those early IBM PCs, it had an amazing 8mhz (mega! wow :). I don't remember doing anything on it, possibly because nothing could be done on it.

Which program would you say every KDE user should have?

I really don't see how a person can live without Konqueror, it just boggles the mind.

If you could add one personal feature to KDE what would that be?

I'de turn Kicker into an AfterStep-like Wharf.

What application/game would you like to see ported to KDE?

I'd like KMySql brought back. Its development stopped when KDE2 was released, and that's a shame, because it was a nice program...

What is the worst thing you ever had to do for KDE?

That can only be the painful KAboutData stuff I did at first, it's a wonder I'm still with KDE :)

Where do you see yourself and KDE 2 years from now?

I'll probably be in a university, and still working on KDE of course.
KDE will be better! We'll have a program for everything, and will have made Unix as easy to use as your common household toaster.

Are you being paid to work for KDE and if yes by who?

No, once I'm liberated of school, this June, I'll be open to invitations *hint*.


Personal Questions

Where and when were you born?

I was born in Tel Aviv, Israel in the early 1980s.

Which University/School did you go to?

I still do, like most of the other developers, the main difference is that I'm still attending a high school. It seems as if university graduation is KDE's biggest enemy in terms of where we lose our developers.

What's your status, are you single and up for adoption?

I'm single.

Do you have children?

Nope.

What are the biggest turning points/events in your life?

Well, a couple years ago, I finally realized what kind of stuff I'll be doing for the rest of my life (coding :). I realized how much I enjoy this all.

What is the nicest thing anyone ever did for you?

All that monitor radiation makes this very difficult to answer...
There's no way to give one specific answer, so I have to be general.
I think it's a kind of friendship and trust I get from friends, you know you can trust them.

If your house is on fire what would be the first thing you would grab to take with you?

Well, my family certainly, and then my cat.

What are the elements for a perfect vacation?

I think it has to be planned well enough so you just don't sit around and watch TV, I can do that at home.

What are the things you want to have done before you die?

I'd like to have a business. One that really comes out with new stuff, and makes people's lives easier, in some way, and not one with a mission of profit.

What do you (and your s.o) like to do in your spare time?

My spare time is spent on Noatun, I'd probably work less on Noatun if I had an s.o. ;-)

What was the last movie you have seen?

I think that would be Meet the Parents, with my sister. The fact that it was released last year suggests how frequently I see movies.

What was the last fiction book that your have read?

2010: Odyssey Two.

What song brings back a favorite memory? And why?

I can't remember :) Perhaps the question should be, what memory brings back the memory of a song that brings back your favorite memorym, however I can't remember that either.

If you could be invisible for 2 hours where would you go and what would you do?

Listening on to conversations, like big business deals, the signing of peace treaties, that kind of stuff. You know the press releases are full of lies anyway.

You having some friends over for a party and you're allowed to invite 3 famous people who would you invite and why?

Kelsey Grammer, for his work in Frasier, it's just that rare non-low-brow entertainment.
Stephen Hawking, he's insightful.
And Douglas Adams, for the important wise-cracks.

Did you ever met a fellow KDE'r in person, when and where?

I've met several in the last Linux World Expo in San Jose. Lotzi Boloni, Kurt Granroth, Stefan Westerfeld, and Alex Zepeda were there.

Name your favorite quote/saying.

"I might disagree with what you have to say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it." -- Voltaire