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+My internship with the FSF tech team and beyond
+-----------------------------------------------
+
+ Originally published on the Free Software Foundation's sysadmin
+ blog:
+ https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/my-internship-with-the-fsf-tech-team-and-beyond
+
+Hello! I'm Amin Bandali, and this is my second blog post on the FSF
+sysadmin blog, concluding my internship with the FSF tech team this
+year.
+
+Throughout my internship with the tech team, I have worked mainly on
+sysadmin tasks related to setting up and/or managing FSF's GNU/Linux
+servers. Perhaps most significantly, I set up an instance of the
+Sourcehut[1] forge software to help evaluate[2] it as a candidate
+for the upcoming FSF forge project[3]. I documented the installation
+and setup process of Sourcehut's various components in the form of a
+literate GNU Emacs Org-mode file, where source blocks are interspersed
+with comments and prose explaining them. One can then progressively
+evaluate and execute the source blocks, and optionally have their
+results stored back in the Org file itself to help with
+documentation/demonstration.
+
+[1] https://sourcehut.org
+[2] https://libreplanet.org/wiki/FSF_2020_forge_evaluation
+[3] https://www.fsf.org/blogs/sysadmin/coming-soon-a-new-site-for-fully-free-collaboration
+
+I have also been slowly working on various improvements for the server
+running www.gnu.org, and will continue doing work on it as a volunteer
+after the end of my internship. This will hopefully be beneficial to
+the FSF sysadmins running the server, the GNU webmasters who do
+webmastering work on gnu.org, and the general public browsing and
+using gnu.org's pages. Notably, changes included upgrading the server
+to the latest release of Trisquel GNU/Linux, and revamping and
+improving the search mechanism for gnu.org's pages. Additionally,
+there are several other projects that I would like to tackle with the
+tech team in the near future.
+
+During my internship with the FSF tech team, I picked up a variety of
+new skills and learned more about a diverse set of topics and tools.
+This included building and installing a complex piece of software like
+Sourcehut and debugging issues encountered along the way, using
+Ansible for managing and deploying infrastructure, as well as learning
+more about the Exim mail transfer agent used to run FSF and GNU's
+array of mail servers.
+
+In conclusion to my internship and the year 2020, it's safe to say
+that this year has been an eventful year for many people, including
+myself. I started my internship with the tech team back in May, and
+as a graduate student at the time, I was expecting a reasonable and
+balanced workload for my work on my thesis over the coming months.
+However, early on (less than two weeks) into my internship I learned
+that due to a number of reasons, I needed to complete my master's
+studies on a two-month deadline. I told the tech team about the
+issue, asking whether I could take a hiatus to complete my studies
+without affecting my internship. I am beyond thankful to the tech
+team and the FSF as whole for being accommodating, and for their
+flexibility in allowing me to take a leave to focus on writing my
+thesis and wrapping up my master's studies. I managed to successfully
+wrap up my studies in that short timeline, and focus on my internship
+afterwards.
+
+However, all good things must come to an end, and this internship is
+no exception. I am incredibly grateful to the members of the FSF tech
+team -- Ian, Andrew, Ruben, and Michael -- for welcoming me to the
+team as an intern and mentoring me, answering my many questions, and
+helping me learn more. It has been an honour and a wonderful
+experience for me all around working with you all and seeing the
+energy and passion with which you take on the work and
+responsibilities that come with being an FSF sysadmin and Web
+developer. While most of my interactions were with the tech team, I
+also got to interact with FSF staffers from several other teams during
+my internship, and I'm thankful for our conversations and the chance
+to get to know and appreciate the important work you do.
+
+This internship has come to an end, but I will carry with me all of
+the good memories and the lessons I learned along the way, and will
+happily to continue working with you as a volunteer. The things I
+learned have been invaluable and greatly helpful to me, as I
+transitioned into my new full-time job at Savoir-faire Linux as a Free
+Software Consultant, where I get to work on various parts and aspects
+of Jami, a GNU package for universal communication which respects the
+freedoms and privacy of its users.
+
+This internship has come to an end, but I will carry with me all of
+the good memories and the lessons I learned along the way, and will
+happily to continue working with you as a volunteer. The things I
+learned have been invaluable and greatly helpful to me, as I
+transitioned into my new full-time job at Savoir-faire Linux as a Free
+Software Consultant, where I get to work on various parts and aspects
+of Jami, a GNU package for universal communication which respects the
+freedoms and privacy of its users.
+
+I would like to thank the FSF for providing me this excellent
+opportunity to work alongside the tech team as an intern, and take
+away so many valuable lessons and great memories.
+
+ Interested in interning for the Free Software Foundation?
+ The application period for spring 2021 internships is currently
+ open. Please see https://www.fsf.org/volunteer/internships for
+ more details and information on how to apply!
+
+
+ -*-
+
+Copyright (c) 2020 bandali
+
+Copying and distribution of this file, with or without modification,
+are permitted in any medium without royalty provided the copyright
+notice and this notice are preserved. This file is offered as-is,
+without any warranty.
+
+published: 2020-12-18
+this file: https://bndl.org/fsf-internship/fsf-internship-beyond.txt
projects / ~bandali / bndl.org / blobdiff