Dear ArcaOS, eCS and OS/2 users,

Here is a list of upcoming projects for 2018 that VOICE is working on or will be working on to help with promoting OS/2 and make your usage easier. You have not heard much from OS/2 VOICE since I have been moving to new apartment because I have a new job. Also a family members has been in hospital very sick but she has recovered. Anyway here is the list:

*A Teamviewer kind of solution for OS/2*

We are working on a project to provide a free of charge remote control program for people who need remote support for OS/2. It will consist of a Warpin package you can download. Via a secured encrypted SSH tunnel a volunteer from the community will be able to login into your system and with VNC access your desktop when you start the Warpin package. It will not need any setup on your side. So this is somewhat of a Teamviewer solution for OS/2. The person providing support will need to setup the server side. But this will be documented. We hope this can make it easier to help community members if they are somehow stuck!

* Warpstock Europe 2018 in Berlin
On the 26th and 27th of May OS/2 VOICE will host Warpstock Europe 2018 in Berlin Germany. While some of the donators do not come to Warpstock Europe. As I previously explained Warpstock is a benefit for all OS/2 users as OS/2 developers meet at the event and discuss issue's and future plans. So in the end the whole community benefits from this event! You will also be able to follow the conference via a free videostream. Keep an eye on www.warpstock.eu for more details.

* Installing LAN server support on ArcaOS.
* VOICE will publishing a free tool that will enable you to install your WSeB or ACP1/2 onto LAN server components an OS/2 MCP or ArcaOS. This will enable you to turn your ArcaOS installation into an OS/2 domain controller.

* New browser funding campaign.
* So far the campaign to collect funding for a new OS/2 web browser has in total generated 7400 US Dollar.  About 2000 Dollars of additional funding is on its way, but this amount is not certain yet. On behalf of BWW and the OS/2 VOICE board we like to thank the OS/2 community their donations. That said the 10.000 Dollars was a target to get started. So please keep the donations coming in: See the browser funding campaign for more information. As I always say free software does not grow on tree's, somebody needs to port the software.

* Free RPM software library for OS/2 applications
Some people still have seconds thoughts about RPM being used on OS/2. In my opinion the useability of RPM has increased with Arca Noae Package Manager. With the release of ANPM 1.02 more user issue's have been resolved.  Also it has been painfully obvious many OS/2 users do not know what software can be downloaded for OS/2 and if they do find it for a lot of end users its simply to complicated to install some the software.

VOICE has the domain name rpm.os2voice.org ready to go. The idea is that software developers and the community help package software in RPM format so people can for example install a current Multimedia player on OS/2 by a few mouse clicks in ANPM. The RPM repository  will  be accessible by the OS/2 community free of charge of course.

VOICE is looking for people who want to help package old and new OS/2 software in RPM format.
If you are not familiar how to build an RPM package this is a good place to start, Andy Willis his presentation on how to make an RPM package: http://www.warpstock.org/filemgmt/visit.php?lid=263 (This is an Open Office presentation)
Or the video recorded at Warpstock 2017 in Toronto of this presentation.

Once this RPM library is being filled up with  programs we also would like to work together with https://www.ecsoft2.org/. We have been in touch before with the people behind ecsoft2.org but things got put on hold because we had no RPM files. The idea is that we would like to see if Arca Noae can update ANPM so it can show a description of the program you are going to install and a screenshot (information loaded for ecsoft2.org)! It would be a complete software catalog for OS/2 users.

If you would like to help create RPM packages please send an email to president at os2voice.org.

* Financial transparency:
It should be noted that your donations are more then welcome and VOICE will published it yearly financial report for 2017 shortly. Also a cash audit commission will check the bank receipts. Both reports will be posted here: http://www.os2voice.org/reports.html
Before any money is the VOICE board that consists of 7 members votes on any propels.
We hope in these ways we provide the best transparency possible how your donations are spend. We can give you access to an upload directory. Note we will test the package before its uploaded for generic usage. We do not want to break people there systems...

You can make a donation via the Arca Noae webshop.

Best regards,

Roderick Klein

President OS/2 Foundation