2025-02-18 CC Working Group Meeting Notes

Date

Feb 18, 2025

Participants

@Adolfo Brandes
@Cassie Zamparini
@Edward Zarecor
@Jorge Londoño
@Maksim Sokolskiy
@Maria Fernanda Magallanes Z
@Xavier Antoviaque

🤖 AI-Generated Meeting Summary

1. Documentation and MFEs (Micro Frontends) Criteria

Adolfo Brandes provided an update on the improved product review process, emphasizing that the product working group is now deeply involved in evaluating new MFEs before they are integrated into the platform. This includes ensuring that new features meet criteria such as proper documentation and alignment with the platform's roadmap.
Xavier Antoviaque raised the issue of historical MFEs that were integrated without adequate review. Adolfo clarified that while there is no coordinated effort to retroactively review old MFEs, the current process ensures that new features are thoroughly vetted.
Ed Zarecor confirmed that several action items related to MFEs have been completed, including the transition of release management and the establishment of a clear process for reviewing the scope of releases (e.g., Redwood release). The product working group, led by Chelsea, is now responsible for ensuring new features meet the necessary criteria.

2. Notifications and Feedback System

Xavier Antoviaque discussed ongoing work by Ali on integrating notifications for the LMS and Studio to facilitate community feedback. The goal is to piggyback on existing notification work being done by 2U and Arbisoft.
Axolittle provided additional context, noting that the product team is currently revisiting the requirements for notifications, particularly in the context of learner grouping and mobile push notifications. The aim is to develop a unified, community-supported notification system that integrates with both the LMS and Studio.
There was a discussion about the private repository used by 2U for their notification plugin, which is not open for community contributions. The group agreed that the community should aim for a single, open-source solution for notifications.

3. Working Group Updates and Documentation

Cassie Zamparini provided an update on the Open edX Handbook project. She has incorporated feedback from the previous meeting and is preparing for a final review before moving forward with implementation. The plan is to start with small changes to test the process before making larger updates.
Xavier Antoviaque suggested engaging with the documentation working group to ensure alignment and avoid potential conflicts. Cassie plans to reach out to the documentation working group chair to introduce the proposed changes.

4. Upstream PR Reviews and Contributor Workflow

Progress was reported on improving the upstream PR review process. Kshitij is working on a global list of reviewers, and Braden is leading efforts to implement the single responsible person principle for PRs. This ensures that each PR has a clear owner who is responsible for moving it through the review process.
Xavier Antoviaque mentioned ongoing work to create a Kanban board to better track the status of contributions. This will provide greater transparency and help contributors understand the current state of ongoing work.

5. Open edX Partners and Maintainers

Xavier Antoviaque provided an update on the ongoing vote among Open edX partners to formalize commitments and ensure that contributors have adequate time and resources for their work. The goal is to align partner commitments with maintainership responsibilities, addressing previous concerns about limited contributor time.
The vote includes proposals for different levels of commitment (e.g., time, resources) and criteria for becoming a partner. The outcome of the vote will be reviewed by the Technical Oversight Committee (TOC) and the Open edX community before implementation.

6. Communication Tools Consolidation

Ali is leading an effort to evaluate and consolidate communication tools within the Open edX community. Initial tests have been conducted on the chat and wiki features of Discourse, using the OpenCraft Discourse instance as a testbed.
The findings from this evaluation will be compiled and discussed to determine the best approach for consolidating communication tools. The goal is to reduce fragmentation and make it easier for community members to communicate and collaborate.

7. Onboarding and Survey Simplification

Updates were made to the onboarding documentation to encourage newcomers to join working groups. This change was based on feedback from the community survey and the Open edX summit.
Feanil is expected to propose changes to simplify the regular community survey process. The goal is to make the survey more efficient and easier to complete while still gathering valuable feedback from the community.

8. General Updates and Next Steps

The meeting concluded with a review of ongoing tickets and progress on various initiatives. Xavier Antoviaque noted that many tasks from the conference proposal are moving forward, with only a few remaining to be started.
The group emphasized the importance of keeping meetings concise and encouraged contributors to update tickets regularly to streamline discussions. This will help ensure that future meetings are focused and productive.

9. Open Discussion and Closing Remarks

The group had some extra time at the end of the meeting but no additional topics were raised for discussion. Xavier Antoviaque encouraged everyone to continue updating tickets and collaborating asynchronously.
The meeting ended with participants expressing appreciation for the progress made and looking forward to continued collaboration.

Key Takeaways:

The product working group is now deeply involved in reviewing new MFEs, ensuring they meet criteria such as documentation and alignment with the platform's roadmap.
Efforts are underway to develop a unified notification system for the LMS and Studio, with a focus on community-supported solutions.
The Open edX Handbook project is progressing, with plans to engage the documentation working group for final reviews.
Improvements to the upstream PR review process and contributor workflow are ongoing, with a focus on transparency and efficiency.
A vote among Open edX partners is underway to formalize commitments and ensure contributors have adequate time and resources.
Communication tools are being evaluated for consolidation, with initial tests conducted on Discourse.
Onboarding documentation has been updated to encourage newcomers to join working groups, and the community survey process is being simplified.

The meeting highlighted significant progress across multiple initiatives and emphasized the importance of collaboration and transparency in moving the Open edX project forward.

🎥 Recording and Chat Log

Discussion topics

Discussion topics for the agenda are tracked at https://github.com/orgs/openedx/projects/62/views/1 - to add a topic to the agenda, add a ticket to the project, in the column “Upcoming meeting agenda”.

Open edX Community