[VOTE] Revoke votes related to LibreOffice Online atticiziation and freezing of repository

Dear Community,

FOSDEM has been yet another venue where people have asked either the availability of an online version of LibreOffice or, for those that were aware of the existence, about the status/future plans of LibreOffice Online. This follows similar questions at many other events, as local communities report.

As many in our community are aware, LibreOffice Online started thanks to substantial funding provided by The Document Foundation. Code contributions were made largely by ecosystem companies while community volunteers contributed with documentation, localization and the help system. LibreOffice Online was well-known globally thanks to the LibreOffice brand allowing it to thrive - and thanks to contributions from the community and companies of the ecosystem until it was forked by a member of the commercial ecosystem in October 2020.

Past Boards, with Board members acting in Conflict of Interest on all stages of the processes, voted to “freeze” the repository and eventually put it into the “attic”, and linking to their own third-party repositories.

There was an open letter in 2022 (Open letter for revive LOOL, add your +1 if you agree). There was also external funding for projects using the LibreOffice Online name (NLnet; Collabora Online/LibreOffice Accessibility and (NLnet; LibreOffice/Collabora Online typography).

We acknowledge the importance that an online version of LibreOffice has for the community, and the need to correct a situation that has been unsatisfactory for too long.

Many of the details in terms of processes and technologies that could be used moving forward need to be clarified in an open discussion with the community, including ecosystem partners, whom we explicitly invite to the discussion, so this is now a starting point.

To start the process of freeing LibreOffice Online, and to start the journey that will lead to having an online version by the community and for the community, we propose the following vote:

  1. Revoke the decisions to freeze the LibreOffice Online repository
  1. Revoke the decision to put LibreOffice Online in the “attic”
  1. Reopen the repository for LibreOffice Online at TDF for contributions

  2. Provide warnings about the state of the repository until TDF’s team agrees that it’s safe and usable - while at the same time encourage the community to contribute with code, technologies and other contributions that can be used to move forward

  3. Actively work with the community to identify how to foster LibreOffice Online, including technological basis

The vote runs 72h from now.

Best,
Eliane Domingos

13 Likes

I vote in a favour.

Best,
Eliane Domingos

3 Likes

+1 for me.

Paolo

3 Likes

+1
Sophie

3 Likes

+1

3 Likes

-1

I vote in favor

+1

–Osvaldo

3 Likes

Voto a favor!
+1

I vote in a favour.
+1

¡Voto a favor!
Votare a favore!
Voter pour!
FĂĽr!

+1

I vote +1.

-1

I vote in favour.

Best,
Jean-Francois Nifenecker

+1

Kind regards,
Regina Henschel