Matthew Revell

Wow, we’ve put Launchpad version 1.0 into public beta and it looks great!

Since I joined Canonical, almost all the Launchpad team’s work has been focused on 1.0. The chaps have consistently impressed me with their talent and 1.0 is testament to their vision, high standards and skill.

So, let’s take a look at what’s new.

New interface

The most obvious change in Launchpad 1.0 is the new interface.

Launchpad does a lot. It is made up of five principal tools and has different contexts depending on the project, distribution, team or individual you’re working with at that time. The interface has a lot of work to do to make it intuitive to navigate all that information.

Simpler home page

The previous Launchpad home page was great for people already using Launchpad but I think it was a touch overwhelming for people new to the service.

The new Launchpad home page is clean and its simplicity sets the tone for the rest of interface.

Importantly, it’s now easy to get a feel for what Launchpad is and to see what tools it offers:

You can also jump straight to a project by entering its name in the nice big search box.

Brandability

Many different projects use Launchpad. To make it obvious which project you’re working on, Launchpad displays the project’s logo at the top of each page.

Brandability isn’t just for projects, though. I’ve got my mug on pages associated with me:

Similarly, it’s now easier to identify pages associated with particular Launchpad teams:

Getting around

A drop-down menu, in the top green navigation bar, lets you drill down further into project, team or individual that you’re currently working with:

Nice obvious buttons help contributors dive straight in:

The Actions menu, in the left-hand column, is always a useful place to find out what you can do in that application, in that context. Beneath, expandable boxes have additional information about the project, team or individual.

Seeing what people have done

Launchpad is all about collaboration. Knowing what projects and types of work interests a person is useful if you want to work with them.

User profile pages now have more information about that person’s activity in Launchpad:

Project cloud

Launchpad’s code hosting solves three problems in one go:

1. Finding somewhere to host your code.
2. Keeping track of all the branches of your project.
3. Getting commit access to projects using Subversion and CVS.

The project cloud gives you a quick way to see which projects host their code with Launchpad. The darker the name, the more active the project and the larger the name, the more code they host.

Try it, let us know what you think

Launchpad 1.0 also has loads of new code under the surface, ready for all the new features we have planned for the coming months.

Soon, we’ll be re-opening the private beta again, as we get to work on making free software collaboration even easier. You’re welcome to join the Launchad Beta Testers team.

For now, we can’t wait to hear what you think of the public beta of 1.0.
Visit https://launchpad.net and email feedback@launchpad.net with your comments, questions and suggestions!

I’m sitting in Shannon airport, overlooking the marsh lands at the edge of the river Shannon, having spent the past few days at SkyCon, in Limerick.

Jono, Stuart and I were here to talk on our various areas of interest, and grabbed the opportunity to record an episode of LugRadio. We interviewed some cool people and the show will be out next Monday, as usual.

My talk was about translating using Launchpad. Ireland is one Europe’s most important centres for localisation and it was astounding just how many people I met that are involved in either software translation or documentation.

On my first day at SkyCon, I met up with Noirin, who works as a technical author and uses Launchpad’s Translations for her work on free software projects. Her enthusiasm for Launchpad was great.

“I love Launchpad,” she told me.

Launchpad’s Translations does exactly what she needs and makes it easy.

Noirin confirmed my belief that we’re on the cusp of a new wave of people in the free software community who aren’t coders but who care about software freedom and can plug many of the skills gaps in the community.

Launchpad works for Noirin because it lets her concentrate on one thing: being a translator. She doesn’t have to care about po files or even know that GetText exists.

We need to find ways that enable non-coders – like me – to get the most from the time they have to spend on software projects. Whether it’s a service/software like Launchpad, or a community like SpreadFirefox, I can’t wait to see how our community is going to make the most of the skills that the rest of the world has to offer.

I’m heading over to Limerick, this weekend, for SkyCon.

It looks as though it’s going to be a really cool event, sharing much the same spirit as LugRadio Live. The programme of speakers is nicely varied, with hardcore FOSS geekery through to talks on the social implications of technology.

I’ll be speaking, on Launchpad, at 11am on Sunday. Jono and Stuart are coming too, so we’ll be covering the whole thing for LugRadio too. Sadly, our bald bald friend can’t make it, so it looks as though we now have a tradition of only three of us attending foreign events.
If you’re in Ireland, or anywhere near an airport that’ll get you to Shannon, scrap your plans for the weekend and get over to Limerick. I’m seriously impressed by how well organised SkyCon has been, from a speaker’s perspective, so I’m sure the actual event’s going to be fantastic.

It’d be great to hook up with anyone that wants to chat about Launchpad and Bazaar. Email/grab me on irc (mrevell in #launchpad) if you want to arrange a particular time.

Next year, you’re going to be seeing some pretty cool stuff from Launchpad. The bosses have got us locked in a basement over Christmas just to make sure.

In the new year, though, we’re trying something different for one day a week: Fix-it Fridays. Each developer will work on whatever they want to see improved in Launchpad.

Now, if you’re a Launchpad user and you’ve got ideas or feedback for Launchpad, let me know. I’m always keen to hear how we can make Launchpad better.

However, if you’ve got a small-ish fix, persuade a developer that they should do it as part of Fix-it Friday.

Here’s how it works:

1. Join us in #launchpad on irc.freenode.net.
2. Either ping me – matthewrevell – or tell the channel what your requested fix is.
3. Use whatever means necessary to persuade a Launchpad developer they want to work on it.

Number three might be quite easy, or it might involve bribery.

We’re always keen to hear what Launchpad users want – seriously, Skype me (matthewrevell), email me (my first and last name at canonical.com) or ring me (mail me for the PSTN or SIP number). Fix-it Friday, though, is a chance for the Launchpad developers to work on their personal priorities. Now, if a few DVDs and some flattery persuade a developer that their priorities coincide with yours, then fair game

Join us for the first full Fix-it Friday in #launchpad on January 5th 2007!

Recently, I’ve had something of a secret. It’s been hard to keep quiet but now I can let everyone know.

In a few weeks, I shall be joining Canonical to work on the marketing for Launchpad.

I’ve felt an affinity with Canonical – also the people behind Ubuntu – since we first interviewed Mark Shuttleworth, the company’s founder, on LugRadio. Their pragmatic, yet principled, human-focused approach matches my own passion for widening the acceptability of open source software.

I look forward to sharing some of my plans for the role, over the coming weeks, and to joining one of the most exciting tech companies in the world!