Quick recap (Zoom AI Companion)
The GMT team held their regular meeting to discuss the upcoming 6.7 release and infrastructure updates. Solar reported progress on setting up the EarthScope version of the remote data server, including plans for DNS configuration with generic and EarthScope-specific aliases. Joaquim raised concerns about ongoing GMT server connection issues that were causing test failures, particularly with GitHub’s current state. The team discussed the release timeline, targeting mid-July, with Joaquim confirming he had created an installer and could begin the release process soon. A significant portion of the meeting focused on determining the proper order of authors for the release, with Walter emphasizing the importance of giving proper credit to current active developers while maintaining recognition for the original creators. The group also discussed using Zenodo for version documentation and release credits. Finally, Garrett suggested exploring AI assistant tools for GMT users, with the team agreeing to research potential options for future implementation.
Next steps
David
- Discuss Joaquim’s pull request with him after the meeting.
Federico
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Handle the Zenodo registration for the GMT 6.7 release.
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Discuss and define the list of contributors for the Zenodo release entry.
Joaquim
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Start the GMT 6.7 release process, aiming for the week of July 20th, with a target date of July 29th.
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Create the installer for the GMT 6.7 release.
Rob
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Research options for a team subscription to AI services (e.g., ChatGPT) for developers, considering licensing and budget constraints.
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Investigate the possibility of implementing an AI assistant for GMT users.
Solar
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Set up DNS entries for remote data server, including remote.data.genericmappingtools.org and earthscope.genericmappingtools.org, and test the configuration.
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Send meeting announcements and agendas to all participants, regardless of response status, to ensure everyone is informed.
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Investigate and update the process for sending meeting invitations and reminders.
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Review the release checklist and documentation for the GMT release process.
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Request Dongdong to update permissions for Solar to commit to the GMT repository.
Collaboration
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Joaquim and David: Have a follow-up discussion after the meeting regarding the pull request.
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Rob and Garrett: Have a short discussion about budget after the main meeting concludes.
Summary
VTK and Qt Integration Setup
The group discussed technical setup requirements for VTK and Qt integration, specifically regarding a branch maintained by Tom O’Reilly. David explained that the branch includes both VTK and Qt components and looks for them as prerequisites when running CMIG. The discussion touched on installation methods, with David noting that on Mac using Homebrew the setup works without building VTK from source, though Linux compatibility remains untested.
EarthScope Remote Data Server Setup
Solar reported progress on setting up the EarthScope remote data server, including plans for DNS configuration with a generic mapping tools domain and an EarthScope data server alias. Joaquim raised concerns about ongoing issues with the GMT server, noting that many tests were failing due to connection problems, particularly when building GMT with a GPU on the Oceania mirror. Solar agreed to continue implementing the DNS setup and testing the remote data server, with plans to complete this either this week or next week.
Meeting Notifications and Release Planning
The team discussed issues with meeting notifications and agendas, with Solar acknowledging they only sent the agenda to people who had previously confirmed attendance. Walter and Joaquim mentioned not receiving meeting notifications, and the group agreed that Solar should send meeting announcements to everyone in the future. The conversation then shifted to planning the next release of GM 6.7, though the specific timeline was not finalized in this discussion.
Release Scheduling and GMT Issues
Joaquim and Solar discussed scheduling a release, with Joaquim suggesting late July due to holiday plans, while Solar mentioned being unavailable the week of July 20-24. Joaquim reported making progress on creating an installer and identified a timing issue in GMT where month jumps start at day one rather than respecting the original period, causing label overlaps in annotations. Walter expressed confusion about the described problem and requested examples of how GNU plot would handle the same situation.
Date Ticking Bug Discussion
The team discussed a bug related to date ticking and annotation functionality where ticks are not properly aligned with 7 or 14-day intervals across month boundaries. Joaquim explained that while the current behavior appears problematic, the code implementing it seems deliberate, though the original intent may need reassessment. Walter suggested not holding up the release due to this issue and recommended further discussion to understand the historical context and user needs the code was originally designed to address. Solar indicated they would need 2-3 additional days to test DNS configuration before being ready for the release process early or mid-next week.
Release Process Planning Meeting
Joaquim and Solar discussed the release process, with Joaquim expressing that there’s no reason to delay starting the release any longer than necessary. They agreed to target Tuesday the 7th for the release, with Solar planning to verify the DNS naming scheme and work out the details. Joaquim mentioned that the current release checklist is too long and needs simplification, and he explained two important steps in the process: changing dates to create official tarballs and managing the changelog properly.
Software Release Attribution Discussion
The team discussed the order and attribution of authors for software releases, particularly regarding how to properly credit contributors beyond the original founders. Walter emphasized the importance of giving appropriate credit to current developers and contributors rather than taking credit himself, noting that recognition for software work was much harder to obtain in earlier career stages. Rob suggested using Zenodo’s JSON format to distinguish between creators (original founders) and contributors (active developers for specific releases), which would allow proper acknowledgment of current contributors and their affiliations. The discussion concluded with Solar asking Federico if he had the bandwidth to manage the Zenodo release process.
Code Contribution and Registration Process
The team discussed handling code contributions and registration processes. Federico agreed to handle Zenodo registration for completed tarballs, while Solar and Joaquim noted that Solar needs proper permissions to commit to the main repository, which will need to be addressed by Dongdong. The group also briefly discussed contributor guidelines, with Joaquim indicating that standard open source practices should suffice for most contributors who are familiar with standard processes.
AI Tools Subscription Implementation
The team discussed implementing a team subscription for AI tools, with Joaquim expressing a need for more credits due to current limitations affecting his work on a large project. Rob noted concerns about API licensing costs and mentioned exploring nonprofit pricing options, though questions remain about whether external developers can be included under their current licensing scheme. The group also discussed potential AI assistant integration for GMT users, with Garrett suggesting research into existing tools and interfaces that could be encoded into the codebase. The conversation ended with plans for a separate discussion about budget after the main group leaves.