Hello together, I want to speak as an openSUSE Ambassador/Advocate and with my experience at a SUSE Partner and with customers. From my point of view, the change of the openSUSE randing does not make sense. The reason is the "SUSE marketing" using openSUSE Members as role models and using openSUSE in their training material instead of SUSE Linux Enterprise. Also they forward their customers to openSUSE for using community support. I want to explain that deeper.
Gesendet: Montag, 08. Juli 2024 um 01:51 Uhr Von: "Jim Henderson" <hendersj@gmail.com> An: project@lists.opensuse.org Betreff: Re: Rebranding of the Project
On Sun, 07 Jul 2024 22:01:33 +0200, Knurpht-openSUSE wrote:
Hear, Hear. I am ( and have been ) in total agreement with Shawn. Incl. the last part. Let's keep this a rational discussion, and be aware that now we have it all in our own hands.
Likewise. As one of the admins on the FB group and on the forums, we see (in those two venues at least) a not insignificant number of people asking for help with the SLES platforms, even though they're paying for support through their subscription. It often takes multiple explanations before they finally understand that "openSUSE != SUSE" and that Leap/Tumbleweed/ Kalpa/etc. are not SLES or SLED.
That has got different reasons: 1) openSUSE Backports (with Community Support) for Package Hub We had already many discussions during breaks at openSUSE Conferences about this topic. SUSE is sending Enterprise customers to the openSUSE community, that they should receive community support for openSUSE Backports (Package Hub). If they are receiving our support via Bugzilla, why shouldn't they also request for support in our openSUSE Forums, if the openSUSE community is providing such good support? From my point of view, the Package Hub is a good handshake between SUSE and openSUSE for the "existing" collaboration and we can continue, if we are allowed to keep our name/branding. My suggestion regarding Package Hub (in the case of the name change): SUSE should be responsible for the support of Package Hub for their own. Only then, the customers will realize, that there are different support types/levels available. 2) openSUSE versioning for Explaining SLES versions as SUSE Linux (SLE Certification material) It is nice and friendly, that SUSE is using openSUSE Leap for CLA/CLE trainings. But in the theory stuff, they are explaining in the online training our openSUSE Leap version system under the title "SUSE Linux" on this way, that customers/partners can think, that openSUSE Leap would be an Enterprise Product by SUSE. Take a step back and think about such a training by SUSE, where the SLES versioning is not based on the Service Packs explained. You are trained and certified by SUSE afterwards. Wouldn't you ask then also the openSUSE community for support, because openSUSE is represented as a SUSE product? My suggestion: SUSE should change their training material to the Service Pack versioning. The openSUSE community can not do that and is not responsible for "what is SUSE teaching".
I don't really see this as being fundamentally different than (for example) when RedHat's OSS project rebranded to Fedora - it helped them make the distinction between the OSS project and the commercial products clearer for the audiences.
You are right. During the last oSC, I had a small talk with a Red Hat person contributing to Fedora. They are experiencing also such cases, but not so much. The difference is, that Fedora and RHEL have got a "real" split. openSUSE is collaborating with SUSE in a good way. I like that also, but then we should not receive a request from SUSE to change our branding. That will not solve these problems, because "SUSE is sending their customers to us". They would continue, if we accept it continuously. Then I want to add a 3rd reason/experience, why SUSE customers are reaching out to us: SUSE is using openSUSE Members (especially openSUSE Ambassadors/Advocates) as role models for their marketing. In my case, I have met LPI people at conferences in the past. Pictures were made and SUSE has shared that afterwards on LinkedIn. Afterwards I was asked by SUSE customers, what my role in SUSE would be. I have to be a SUSE employee, if they make marketing with myself. I can not count, how often I have received such statements based on SUSE marketing. It is a default situation for openSUSE Advocates, that we have to say, that we are "community only". A renaming or rebranding of openSUSE does not help us. That would damage us more, because on the fact that the name openSUSE is well known and nobody outside of the community knows, that our chameleon has got the name Geeko. From my point of view, SUSE has to change the 3 topics above. If you can see alternative options to solve these issues, then feel free to add them and to provide feedback. Best regards, Sarah