45 min call with codename 'Yellow'

[Erioldoesdesign]

Interview Script

Hi there Yellow

We’re going to spend some time chatting about your design in OSS experience to date to get a sense of what you have done to date.

Will you be recording video/audio for the diary study or writing?

Mixture of both

Do you want a Zoom room that will auto-record a video/audio for your weekly diary

Would like the Zoom room set up re. file size.

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In your survey it says you’ve been doing this for X time?

Current job in 5 years - first professional outside of school work.

Involved in OSS in uni → 10 years ago (Institution 1) foss program graphic artist hackathons and teams working on a specific OSS project logos UX stuff etc.

Do a lot of things

Data archive funded by open/tax funded American → funding through (Anon Org 1) → (specific name) archive for (specific machines) lots of archival data.

Data that they work with is all open but not all the software to get to the data is.

Do UX for the websites that users (specific job role) use (also public) searching data. Projects around analysing data → (Specific OSS 1) around analysis.

(specific kind of data) of data in FOSS data.

Grant to work on trying to make (Specific OSS 1) more accessible to screen readers etc. usability testing.

How did you start in Design?

As a youth really into painting and art and figuring out how to be an artist but not starve and what that means so getting involved in tech and interested in (specific job role) and what the influence of these things was.

Took game design classes in college and minor in gamification which led to a first job. Gamification led to UX → xerox experience design to the (specific machines). In jobs for longer.

What OSS do you contribute to and participate in?

(Specific OSS 2) → (specific kind of data) python based don’t write the software and barely know how to use it! usability testing, games to get usertesting feedback and outreach to users. Building excitement. Design logo and web dev/design. Given talks at confs and at public outreach at (specific machines) youtube channel and high schools (for (specific kind of data) → blind student focus) and universities.

(Specific OSS 1) for all → leading and organising for it → wrangling a team of people that could make progress on the problem. Grant writing, meetings usability test writing and running them.

(Specific OSS 1) suite of data analysis tools → the UX things → people will reach out as they build about the usability → workflow diagrams and flow, graphic design and logos. incorporating this into closed systems → data search flows → can use on internet on hosted or download → (Specific OSS 1) or application → easy jump into it from data search flow → found data and want to start analysis.

I never respond via github!

Big part of my goal in general is bring down the knowledge ceiling to access data or start analysis and complex undergrad or grad you don’t have to be a phd already → how do we make this easier → not a well funded university or not a big (specific domain) program. Connecting resources → logistics. How do the tools in the kit connect to each other.

(Anon Org 2) archive in general → open data with a lot of different things → not all software is open and not all data is always open but will be open.

(Anon Org 3), (Anon Org 4), (Anon Org 5) - (specific machines)

(Specific OSS 3) → test integrated something something → specific to a (specific machines) → AWS hosted (Specific OSS 1) thing. Large quantities of data using cloud computing involved a little bit in looking at whats been built and how it can be more usable.

First grant fund now funded other → summer art project program run again 2023 summer getting student to use open data and make art with it → wanted it to be open and licensed openly → not software which doesn’t matter → not super official → any produced would be open.

On board for (Institution 1).

How do you decided on a project that they’d like to work on/contribute to?

Sometimes they are handed to me → we have a ux designer now! we can get help.

Manager or coworkers who reach out → sometimes make a choice which to help. If I have time I can if not I should get clarification I’m funded to work on. Charging time to certain projects. General enough work to encompass.

(specific kind of data) (Specific OSS 1) for all → specifically applied for funding to get time on these because valuable to help some people out.

I have a base line ethical and political stance to live by led me to realise I can buy back time to → obligated to submit a proposal to do something → have submitted pure interest work. None of those have been accepted yet. Money to hire people which is nice in (specific job role) and arts how do we disperse this money wider and to people who are underfunded.

(specific location) students and visually impaired students.

Believing in the job pipeline into careers - helping hire people to do valuable work to get jobs

(specific kind of data) re. arts then got interested i the accessibility after hearing about the problems. Knew people who knew how to solve this if they had money and time to work on it. (Specific OSS 1) for all almost felt obligated because of connection.

Do you contribute to OSS as part of a paid role, volunteer (free) or both? in what ratio?

Pretty much paid

If you’re paid for OSS how does this feel to you?

I think it doesn’t bother me to be paid need money to live. If we lived under universal income I wouldn’t need to be paid → I feel lucky to be working on these project and paid for it.

If you’re not paid for OSS how does this feel to you?

Not paid for (Specific institution 1). personal work is open source photographs and zines posted up under open licenses i’ve posted up goal of sharing with others.

What kind of design do you find yourself spending the most time doing? UX? UI? Research?

I want to say UI but I feel like I write more! UI is the biggest 60/70% include running research to inform design. I do some graphic design 5% and then outreach 10%

Writing is the bigger portion 30%/30% communication and organised

usability tests → but mock ups more than written tests → survey writing

Some web dev → FE coding and CMS → Jira system (open?)

Open (Specific OSS 1) landing page design

What tools and software do you use for your contributions?

Axure, Adobe illustrator, Adobe CC, Aftereffects for videos and animations, don’t write directly in (Specific OSS 1) just pages online we write in. Don’t use the open stuff like open word brackets for web dev. Audacity.

What kind of processes and communication happens between you and the others that work on the OSS? Who else works on the OSS?

Slack channels and chats, big on setting meetings working meetings i way I get work done and i need the knowledge gathering in the meeting to then show for feedback and demo and make progress. Standing meetings for projects. Email.

• When does communication work well?
• When did communication falter?

Are there other designers or people that are interested in design in the OSS project?

Yes work other (specific job role) and devs and give really specific design feedback which can be annoying → change colours just do this → well actually it’s more involved → annoying when others who don’t have design insight get involved

(Other designer in this OSS space's name) worked with another designer.

• How did they introduce themselves to you (if they did) and how would you want to work with them?
• How do you want to be supported and how do you want to support others?

Thinking ahead to when you might stop contributing to the OSS projects you do, how would you like to leave that project? what would the design aspects look like to you?

Difficult question - don’t think i’m doing great now → visual design → screenshots in tickets not editable by others so made in software can share files to edit → better if I was working in open software design open software not as good as closed → not that much of a purest → don’t leave in a way people can pick up specific image could be added as an .svg for larger design but want to leave in better place. for that feature of problem it’s done now it’s new and start fresh individual packet of work i provided in that moment.

[Erioldoesdesign]

Call has been done - now editing transcript for PII for public publishing