Re: [Debconf-discuss] DebConf9 reconfirmation period started ; ends 7 June

[MJ Ray <mjr@phonecoop.coop>]

Micah Anderson <micah@riseup.net> wrote:
> Those folks who have requested travel sponsorship are trending towards
> the realization that the cost of travel that they initially put into
> Penta was based on the costs that they came to after research into
> flight costs many months ago and now the costs have changed
> significantly since then. If you update these costs in Penta, you loose
> your place, if you dont update your costs, then you may find out that
> when sponsorship comes that the amount you receive is not going to be
> enough in the end. So you are stuck waiting, and every day you wait the
> chances grow slimmer that you will be able to go at all. 

That pretty much summarises my experience with Debconf travel
sponsorship and its unrealistic relationship with European transport
service booking horizons a couple of years ago.  It was a time when
things were going on and I've encouraged various people to donate
money to the project, so I thought I'd request sponsorship.  In the
end, another group underwrote it but even getting a receipt so I could
get reimbursed was not straightforward.

Furthermore, putting in a conservative estimate results in one being
put further down the travel sponsorship queue than people who submit
optimistic estimates, according to
http://wiki.debconf.org/wiki/DebConf7/SponsoringDetails
(I didn't find a similar page for 8 or 9 - has it changed?)

I'm disappointed to read this situation continues.  I feel that the
obvious adjustment would be:

1. to allow folks who have requested travel sponsorship to put three
values into Penta: best price, that day's list price and worst case;

2. prioritise early; and

3. reimburse people for travel almost as soon as they have purchased,
so you can take a conservative approach to allocation (between list
and worst), but still get almost as far as possible down the queue.

Is this possible?

Hope that helps,
-- 
MJR/slef
My Opinion Only: see http://people.debian.org/~mjr/
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