[December '21]

Denys makes FOSS and takes our Twitter mic from December 13th to 20th. Thank you, Denys!

Please tell us about yourself

Hello, everyone! My name is Denys. I from Ukraine, and I am a creator of DEKUVE project. It’s a free alternative to MS Windows and MacOS, which is designed for an easy and simple migration to FOSS. My main role there is the product and project manager.

In everyday life, I am an ordinary friendly guy who wants to bring plenty of useful things into this world.

What are you working on right now?

Currently, Raul and I are focused on releasing the long-awaited update to our distribution. In parallel, I’m hard at work prototyping our own desktop environment for Linux-based desktop operating systems. I want to bring a new experience of using the OS for home PCs, as well as professional and corporate use too.

What is most interesting about that?

We work under the “help as much as you can” credo. We are creating a distribution kit that will have already solved the problems that a regular novice user may face. This is our principle and approach to the distribution. If you are a developer, then you will already have many different development tools installed out of the box. If you have a small business or you are a student, you already have everything you need.

For now, we are using the Xfce desktop as the basis. It is a lightweight, fast and highly customizable desktop environment that works well for PCs with outdated hardware. Improved and fresh design is also to be expected.

And our original DEKUVE desktop. I promise you’ll fall in love with it.

How did you first discover FOSS?

Back in 2010, when I was already finishing my studies at the university with a degree in organization management, I had some difficulty with Windows and my teacher advised me to try Ubuntu. It was a very new and unusual experience for me. I was really impressed. Now I remember my first experience and it helps me a lot to create the project. Newbies send me their positive feedback and I can see that we are moving in the right direction.

What prompted you to start contributing to FOSS?

Freedom and flexibility! FOSS is the perfect place to start with literally endless opportunities. There are also a number of reasons. Millions of people around the world are faced with pirated software, which includes malware. Many people continue to use older PCs, which prevents them from using modern software. FOSS addresses these issues. Also, maintaining old equipment has a positive impact on the environment.

Another reason, but more of a goal, there is no single place to distribute the free open source software. Our project will solve this problem.

Why should others get involved with FOSS?

This is a case for each individual. It all depends on the goals that the individual pursues. It is an interesting and highly rewarding experience for everyone.

How should they get started?

There is no one way to get started with FOSS. I think you need to start with yourself. You need to understand what you want to bring and what opportunities you have for this. Communication with the FOSS community will guide you perfectly. Even if your skills are far from the sphere of development, you can still bring tremendous benefits. Everyone can make a huge contribution. As a person who is far from software development, understanding what I want to do, I decided to invole in FOSS. At the beginning of my journey, I even felt a kind of despair until I met Raul Dipeas. At that moment, I felt blessed myself and one thing led to another. So, everyone will succeed!

What difficulties and limitations do you see with FOSS?

In my opinion, the biggest difficulty and limitations are the lack of funding and sponsorship. In many cases, even the absence of this all. On the example of our project, we do not have the funds to start work on at least some of the planned things. Also, few people agree to do some work for free. Even among students. We are a young team, and our project has only recently been released. I understand that we still have everything ahead! However, these difficulties and limitations greatly affect the work of the project.

How can they be solved?

Only all together. We need to help each other. Many hands make light work.

Where do you see difficulties in contributing?

I don’t see any difficulties in contributing FOSS. Especially, if you have the same vision of the project’s things. In case our project, we’re open for everyone.

What does a perfect day off look like?

Spending time with family and friends. This is at the top for me. When I want to be alone, I make coffee and enjoy it to the relaxing music of Enigma.

Do you want to tell us something else we didn’t ask?

God bless FOSS! And I’m single :-))