If we were to put Krzysiek Skarbek’s name in a crossword puzzle, the hint could be something like this: “a fan of Debian and a cat lover.” His choices in the #SidnetDonations program reflect these traits quite well. This time is no different. Today our developer from Łódź, who maintains Blogi z pierwszego tłoczenia (the First-pressed blogs) and the website of mali bracia Ubogich (the little brothers of the Poor) association, as well as others, will be choosing the recipients of Sidnet donations for the 8th time.
What charity and open-source projects will we be supporting this month based on Krzysiek’s choices?
Debian
Debian is a 100% free operating system, which has been under development by a dedicated community since 1993. It has become the basis for hundreds of Linux distributions, including Ubuntu, Mint and Deepin.
Since it supports multiple architecture types, it can work on various devices, e.g. Raspberry Pi microcomputers, which even have a dedicated distribution available for them—Raspbian. Debian in also fast and uses little memory, so it can also be effectively used on obsolete computers with weaker hardware.
As a server administrator, Krzysiek values Debian primarily for its reliability:
“Debian works well both on a server and a desktop—I use it daily on my PC and laptop. It is renowned for its stability, which is a crucial thing for any server,” Krzysiek said.
Any Toy Story fans will appreciate the fact that all releases are named after the film characters. There were already releases such as Buzz, Woody and Slink. The unstable version, which is akin to a testing ground, is named after Sid—the film’s antagonist who enjoyed testing the durability of his toys.
JOKOT Foundation
The JOKOT Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping homeless and free-living cats. Its volunteers provide temporary shelter for homeless cats in their own homes, where they treat and tame the animals to prepare them for adoption. They also take care of sterilizing free-living cats in Warsaw.
The foundation also helped Krzysiek make some new friends:
“In 2011, I adopted Boluś and Lala, two cats that had been discovered with their whole family in a bunker next to railway tracks in Warsaw. Boluś quickly found himself at home in the new place but unfortunately, he passed away a few years ago. Since then, Lala has been following me everywhere I go, even though she is still somewhat fearful. But she is slowly getting used to the new household members—Gucio and Leosia,” said Krzysiek.
When choosing new homes for animals, the foundation’s primary criterion is animal welfare. New owners are required to:
- adopt cats in pairs (a single cat may be adopted if another one already lives in the house);
- install safety nets on balconies and windows and secure any tilt windows;
- remove plants that may be poisonous to cats;
- consent to a pre-adoption visit of foundation volunteers.