Norbert Preining

Last modified by Norbert Preining on 2021/03/02 22:05

I am Norbert, and I am running for Affiliate director, nominated by the TeX Users Group.norbert-tux-small.png
You can get in touch with me via the following platforms:

Web | Github | LinkedIn | Twitter

My background

My involvment with open source started with the oldest open source program available, TeX, developed by D.E. Knuth more than 40 years ago. Since then I have contributed not only to TeX Live by writing the whole infrastructure for internet distribution and updates (TeX Live Manager), but also provided up to date TeX packaging for Debian for more than 20 years.

In my professional life I am working at the Fujitsu Research Labs and I'm responsible for our scikit-learn involvement, the biggest machine learning open source library.

The TeX Users Group (TUG) is a membership-based not-for-profit organization, founded in 1980, for anyone who uses the TeX typesetting system created by Donald Knuth and/or is interested in typography and font design. Having supported the open source TeX typesetting system since its founding in 1980 - before the term "open source" was even coined - TUG has been helping for more than 40 years to make open source an integral part of the typesetting world.

I have many years of experience as a board member, with about 15 years member of the board of the scientific society Kurt Gödel Society, and 6 years on the board of directors of the TeX Users Group.

Personal

I'm a mathematician and logician by education, spend a lot of time with my family, and when I have some free time I love going into the mountains. I am also a certified professional mountain guide (UIAGM) (where I often brought my Tux penguin with me, see the photo!), love reading books, travelling, and learning languages (current count: 12).

Agenda

My focus as member of the board will be:

  • Regional Diversity: Living and working in Japan, I am integrated into lots of open source activities in the region. Open Source use and development is growing fast in Japan and surrounding countries, and the OSI should be a player in the dynamic development here.
  • Policy change: While open source here in East Asia is getting increasingly used, the political attitude towards open source is lacking compared to other countries. I hope that the OSI can be an integral part in lobbying for more openness with respect to software development and code here in East Asia.
  • OSI Visibility: Knowledge of and about the OSI is very limited in my geographic area, and I see it as my aim as board member to make the OSI well known and a major player in open source strategies in East Asia.

I am looking forward to being an integral part of the OSI and further the aims and ideals of open source! Thanks for your support.

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