Barir's World

Ubuntu is an African concept of 'humanity towards others'. It is 'the belief in a universal bond of sharing that connects all humanity'. The same ideas are central to the way the Ubuntu community collaborates. Members of the Ubuntu community need to work together effectively, and this code of conduct lays down the "ground rules" for our cooperation.

We chose the name Ubuntu for our distribution because we think it captures perfectly the spirit of the sharing and cooperation that is at the heart of the open source movement. In the Free Software world, we collaborate freely on a volunteer basis to build software for everyone's benefit. We improve on the work of others, which we have been given freely, and then share our improvements on the same basis.

That collaboration depends on good relationships between developers. To this end, we've agreed on the following code of conduct to help define the ways that we think collaboration and cooperation should work.

If you wish to sign the code of conduct, you can sign the Canonical copy online.

Ground rules

This Code of Conduct covers your behaviour as a member of the Ubuntu Community, in any forum, mailing list, wiki, web site, IRC channel, install-fest, public meeting or private correspondence. The Ubuntu Community Council will arbitrate in any dispute over the conduct of a member of the community.

• Be considerate. Your work will be used by other people, and you in turn will depend on the work of others. Any decision you take will affect users and colleagues, and we expect you to take those consequences into account when making decisions. For example, when we are in a feature freeze, please don't upload dramatically new versions of critical system software, as other people will be testing the frozen system and not be expecting big changes.

  Be respectful. The Ubuntu community and its members treat one another with respect. Everyone can make a valuable contribution to Ubuntu. We may not always agree, but disagreement is no excuse for poor behaviour and poor manners. We might all experience some frustration now and then, but we cannot allow that frustration to turn into a personal attack. It's important to remember that a community where people feel uncomfortable or threatened is not a productive one. We expect members of the Ubuntu community to be respectful when dealing with other contributors as well as with people outside the Ubuntu project, and with users of Ubuntu.

  Be collaborative. Ubuntu and Free Software are about collaboration and working together. Collaboration reduces redundancy of work done in the Free Software world, and improves the quality of the software produced. You should aim to collaborate with other Ubuntu maintainers, as well as with the upstream community that is interested in the work you do. Your work should be done transparently and patches from Ubuntu should be given back to the community when they are made, not just when the distribution releases. If you wish to work on new code for existing upstream projects, at least keep those projects informed of your ideas and progress. It may not be possible to get consensus from upstream or even from your colleagues about the correct implementation of an idea, so don't feel obliged to have that agreement before you begin, but at least keep the outside world informed of your work, and publish your work in a way that allows outsiders to test, discuss and contribute to your efforts.

  When you disagree, consult others. Disagreements, both political and technical, happen all the time and the Ubuntu community is no exception. The important goal is not to avoid disagreements or differing views but to resolve them constructively. You should turn to the community and to the community process to seek advice and to resolve disagreements. We have the Technical Board and the Community Council, both of which will help to decide the right course for Ubuntu. There are also several Project Teams and Team Leaders, who may be able to help you figure out which direction will be most acceptable. If you really want to go a different way, then we encourage you to make a derivative distribution or alternative set of packages available using the Ubuntu Package Management framework, so that the community can try out your changes and ideas for itself and contribute to the discussion.

  When you are unsure, ask for help. Nobody knows everything, and nobody is expected to be perfect in the Ubuntu community (except of course the SABDFL). Asking questions avoids many problems down the road, and so questions are encouraged. Those who are asked should be responsive and helpful. However, when asking a question, care must be taken to do so in an appropriate forum. Off-topic questions, such as requests for help on a development mailing list, detract from productive discussion.

  Step down considerately. Developers on every project come and go and Ubuntu is no different. When you leave or disengage from the project, in whole or in part, we ask that you do so in a way that minimises disruption to the project. This means you should tell people you are leaving and take the proper steps to ensure that others can pick up where you leave off.

The Ubuntu code of conduct is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 license. You may re-use it for your own project, and modify it as you wish, just please allow others to use your modifications and give credit to the Ubuntu Project!

Mailing lists and web forums

Mailing lists and web forums are an important part of the Ubuntu community platform. This code of conduct applies very much to your behaviour in those forums too. Please follow these guidelines in addition to the general code of conduct:

1. Please use a valid email address to which direct responses can be made.
2. Please avoid flamewars, trolling, personal attacks, and repetitive arguments. On technical matters, the Technical Review Board can make a final decision. On matters of community governance, the Community Council can make a final decision.

Team leaders

In addition to this Code of Conduct, we hold our community leaders (such as IRC operators, Forums staff, team leaders and LoCo coordinators) to an even higher standard which is documented in the Leadership Code of Conduct.

The Ubuntu Code of Conduct describes the standard for all conduct in the Ubuntu community. Leaders however, are expected to be held to a higher standard. This document provides a set of guidelines and explains to all members the high standards of conduct that leaders in the Ubuntu community should be held.

There are many, many people who hold leadership positions in Ubuntu - from the leaders of translation teams for specific languages, to the folks who hold positions on our Technical Board and Community Council. Our community depends on the drive and inspiration of many people who start LoCo teams or project teams focused on a particular end goal. We expect anybody who takes on a leadership role to meet this higher standard of conduct.

Leadership By Example

We expect leadership by example. In Ubuntu, leadership is not an award, right, or title; it is a privilege. A leader will only retain his or her position as long as he or she acts as a leader. This means that they act with civility, respect, and trust in the ways described in the Code of Conduct. It also means that their contributions are sustained, significant, and reliable for the period that they lead. Leaders in Ubuntu are not autocrats. Leaders in Ubuntu can not and will not stay leaders only because they got there first. Their role stems from shared recognition and respect from their team.

Respecting Ubuntu Processes and Principles

The Code of Conduct does not only apply to leaders. It applies to leaders more. Leaders show more patience, more respect, and more civility than other members of the Ubuntu community. As leaders, they represent their team and, ultimately, the whole Ubuntu project. Leaders do their best to reflect the values that Ubuntu stands for and the behaviors that Ubuntu holds as paramount. Additionally, they take care to act in accordance with Ubuntu governance principles and structures and work within the Ubuntu system to change them.

Delegation

A virtuoso is judged by their actions. A leader is judged by the actions of their team. A leader in Ubuntu knows when to ask for help and when to step back. Good leaders know when not to make a decision but to delegate it to their team. The best leaders balance hard work in the community. Of course, leadership does not mean that leaders delegate unpleasant work to others. Instead, leaders balance hard work on their own -- leadership by example -- with delegation to others and hard work on their own. A leader's foremost goal is ensuring that their team members and team succeed.

Credit

A good leader does not seek the limelight but aims to congratulate their team for the work they do. While leaders are frequently more visible than their team, leaders in Ubuntu use their visibility to highlight the great work of their team members and others.

Conflicts of Interest

A leader notices when they are conflicted and delegates decisions to others on their team or to other teams or governing councils. When in doubt, leaders publicly ask for a second opinion. They realize that perceived conflicts of interest are as important as real conflicts of interest and are cognizant of perceptions; they understand that their actions are as tainted by perceived conflicts as by real ones.

Keeping the Personal Personal

No team is an extension of its leader's personality and leaders' personal feelings and desires will diverge from the interest of their teams. When acting in their capacity of leaders, leaders should not ignore their own beliefs, feelings, and principles but must hold the interests of their team and the Ubuntu community above their own convictions. Leaders make difficult choices but are careful to act in the best interests of their communities. They work with established processes in the community and delegate decisions to others who can.

Stepping Down

The Ubuntu Code of Conduct discusses the importance of gracefully stepping down from a position. This is particularly important for leaders who are responsible for decisions or specific processes - for example, if your participation is needed to reach quorum in a team council. If someone in a leadership role does not have time to fulfill their role temporarily, they should warn their team in advance. If an absence becomes extended, they should step down from their leadership position until they have more time to follow through. Similarly, leaders should step down gracefully -- as described in the Code of Conduct. When someone takes on a leadership position in Ubuntu, they are making a commitment to step down gracefully and to ensure that others on the team can easily continue where they leave off.

Note that this is less important in cases where the leadership role does not "block" decisions while the person is absent. For example, if you are one of a team of 50 list moderators, then an extended absence does not mean you should necessarily step down, because decisions will not be blocked by you not being there. Conversely, if your leadership seat is essential for decisions, then extended absences should be very carefully managed, and you should consider stepping down or at least nominating a stand-in while you will be away.