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MAY
29
2001
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George StaikosA Short Intro
The InterviewWhat is your role within KDE?I do a lot of cryptography work (SSL support, KOffice document locking, ...).I have also done a lot of work on KMail, SOCKS, laptop support, and minor features here and there on lots of components. How and when did you get involved in KDE?Roughly a year ago was when I really started coding for KDE on KMail. I started to get involved in Dec 1999. How much time do you spend on KDE?It varies depending on my schedule, but basically all of my free time. What is your favorite tool? (for developers; what is your favorite editor?)My favorite editor is XEmacs but I use vi most often. (See? I can be a politician too!) Is there a process you follow when you design/write code/translate/write documentation?I tend to look for things that no-one else is doing but are really in need of being done and just start working on it. However I also have little projects that I plan out for months and months before I start (if I ever start). I guess my process varies from time to time. What was your first computer?C=64 back around 1984. I had two games for it - Beach Head and Radar Rat Race (on cartridge!). That's how I learned to code. I got bored with only having two games so I had to learn how to write my own. Which program would you say every KDE user should have?Other than the ones shipped with KDE, every user should have kwintv. If you could add one personal feature to KDE what would that be?H.323 conferencing. I mean the whole works too. Docking call manager, whiteboard, remote control, video send and receive, audio send and receive, X509... What's really needed is a nice convenient way to provide varying video codecs to KDE applications. This is the first big hurdle. What application/game would you like to see ported to KDE?Jumpman from the C=64! I swear it's the best video game ever made. Simple as can be and you'll never get tired playing it. Apogee tried to port it to DOS back in the late 1980's and the original author threatened legal action. Maybe we could change his mind now! Is there any unreleased/unrevealed stuff in your pipe? (New applications/technologies for developers, new icon sets/themes for artists, ...)Not really... Other than the cryptographic library I'm building up for the KOffice filters. I hope to move that to kdelibs soon and make it accessible to all the KDE apps. If you were going to design desktop themes, what would your themes be like?I always just use the default theme. As long as it has all the features in an easy to access place, I'm happy. What is the worst thing you ever had to do for KDE?Hmm. Nothing that I can think of was particularly bad... Where do you see yourself and KDE 2 years from now?I'll probably be more active in development in 2 years as I will not have all kinds of homework to deal with. Are you being paid to work for KDE and if yes by who?Not at all. What is your suggestion for the next KDE meeting? Where should it be held and when? Will you attend?New York! I would attend a KDE meeting in New York. It's not Canada, but Canada is far for most people to travel and New York is close enough to Toronto. Which section of KDE is underrated and could use more publicity?Konqueror views, and aRts. If you had to design a banner with a KDE slogan, what would it say?Got KDE? (and a picture of Konqi with a "milk moustache") Who would you hire to play in a KDE commercial? And what would the scene be like?Arnold Swarzenegger, for sure! It doesn't even have to have anything to do with KDE. Just lots of blowing stuff up, and then a KDE logo at the end. Personal QuestionsWhere and when were you born?Trenton, Ontario, Canada 1978. How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are?Sometimes 8, sometimes 28. Who did you want to be when you grew up?My dad (a construction worker/home builder). Which University/School did you go to?I started at the University of Waterloo but then transferred to the University of Toronto to finish. What's your status, are you single and up for adoption?I have a girlfriend so I'm not single or up for adoption. If married/girlfriend/partner(m/f), how does he/she cope living with a KDE addict?As well as could be expected of a KDE addict. Do you have children?Not that I know of. What is the first hour of your day like?Somewhere between consciousness and unconsciousness. What that event really made a difference in your life?Meeting my girlfriend Christina. What piece of (real or fantasy) software or electronic equipment would make your life easier?A transporter like in Star Trek. What is your most indispensable possession and why?Amazingly, I think it's become my palm pilot. It was given to me by my brother after he won it at Comdex/Canada and I never imagined I would use it as much as I do. It's nice to have prctools too (thanks guys!) so I can develop my own palm apps. What is the best birthday present you could receive?An extended number of hours per day. I just never have enough time for everything I want to do! What was your favorite trip within your own region?I've had many great trips in Canada. Most notable - my trip by car from Toronto to Vancouver, another by car from Toronto to Halifax, and of course many great times in Montreal. What custom in your country, do you wish did not exist?Political and sometimes other fighting between French and English speaking people. If someone plans on visiting your country, what special spot is a must-be?Niagara falls. Of all the places you've lived or visited, which was your favorite? Would you want to live there?I really love the Greek islands, and Greece in general, but I wouldn't want to live there. I'm too accustomed to North America. However I would seriously consider living in the southern US at sometime. Especially Arizona. What do you see from your window?The provincial government. If you could have five other lives/careers, what would they be?A businessman What book have you read that was truer than this morning's newspaper?Virtually any, nowadays. Well if I have to choose, recently I read "Black Holes and Time Warps" by Kip Thorne - an excellent book. What would go into your time capsule?My backup tapes. :) Actually I would probably put pictures of my family and friends, and examples of our greatest works. What would you do if you didn't have to be moral or honest for a day?I would "augment" certain computer systems on and/or off the Internet. If you knew that the world would end tomorrow, what would you do today?I would gather together all my family, my girlfriend and my friends to spend the remaining day with them. If you could only take 3 people with you on a trip around the world, who would you take and why?I would probably take three people who had the ability to really change the world (in a good way) but didn't have any opportunity to make a difference. We all know the No Smoking signs. If you could put an original "No ........." sign on your door, what would it say?On my _door_: "No Windows" List 3 of you favorite url's.http://www.google.com/ Name your favorite quote/saying.D'oh! |