[MapServer-dev] 2024 budget planning

[Lime, Steve D (MNIT)]

This is a good idea and something that we haven't done in some time. There was a 2020 budget outline (https://github.com/MapServer/MapServer/wiki/OSGeo-2020-Budget) that was put together as an ask from the board. If I recall correctly, they basically only allocated the normal per project amount to the project. That's funding we've not taken explicit advantage of most years although I don't know what happens to those $'s if they go unclaimed. There is also a donation balance that could/should be tapped to fund activities.

--Steve 

-----Original Message-----
From: MapServer-dev <mapserver-dev-bounces at lists.osgeo.org> On Behalf Of Jeff McKenna via MapServer-dev
Sent: Wednesday, November 1, 2023 1:00 PM
To: 'MapServer Dev Mailing List' <mapserver-dev at lists.osgeo.org>
Subject: [MapServer-dev] 2024 budget planning

Hi MapServer community (devs, users, packagers, promoters, all),

I see other projects beginning early discussions on planning for 2024 budget spending.  I would like to start a wiki page for the 2024 budget for MapServer.  I am planning on including those items never-funded-yet-heavily-relied-upon-by-users such as releases, packaging, testing/CI infrastructure maintenance, and documentation, as well as source code contributions (in other words, including the full dev community of MapServer in the budget).

I think 2024 is a good time to create a realistic budget for MapServer, and then share that publicly with the FOSS4G community.  I think we'd be happily surprised that organizations are willing to support the sustainability of MapServer.  Worst-case scenario is that we have a publicly available realistic view of the cost of keeping MapServer reliable, secure, and fast, that we can expand upon in future years.

Happy to read other thoughts here, from everyone passionate about MapServer.

thanks!

-jeff

--
Jeff McKenna
GatewayGeo: Developers of MS4W, & offering MapServer Consulting/Dev co-founder of FOSS4G