Meet Cauld
Each month we will interview a different member of Team Mambo. This month we're talking to Chad Auld, better known to most as "cauld." He's not only a member of Team Mambo, but also a member of the MSC, a former Foundation Director, Core Team leader, and current Mambo Project Leader. Chad's the creator/maintainer of the MOStlyCE Editor and also does extra duty contributing to The Blog From The Core.
A Brief Introduction 
Name: Chad Auld Handle on Forums: Cauld Age: 29 Location: California, USA Profession: Yahoo! Software Engineer Homepage: http://opensourcepenguin.net
The Interview In what ways do you make a contribution to Mambo? - I am currently the leader of the Core Development team, member of the Mambo Steering Committee (MSC), and was previously Maintenance team leader. I am also the creator / maintainer of the new default Mambo WYSIWYG editor, MOStlyCE. You're also likely to see me put out the releases, patches, test builds, etc since I help manage the teams Subversion code management repository. When I'm not fine tuning MOStlyCE, I'm fixing bugs, working on new features, trolling the forums, etc.
When did you first hear of Mambo? - I would say around January of 2005. I was on the hunt for a new blog tool and ran across Mambo. I compared it to a number of the most popular CMS systems on the market today and for me Mambo was the best. It didn't take long before I was hooked and well I guess the rest is history...
How and when did you get involved in Mambo? - I got involved in August of 2005 after the Mambo Foundation was formed. The Foundation put out a call for people and I felt I would step up and offer to assist however I could. It has been an amazing experience thus far and I truly enjoy working with such great people.
Are you being paid to work on Mambo? - Well I guess it's all in how you look at it. Do I get a paycheck for my work on Mambo? No. I guess my payment comes in other forms. For me the joy I get from working on this project and the feeling of accomplishment is payment. I take great pride in knowing that hundreds of thousands of people are running code that I helped write. It pushes me to code to the best of my ability. Now would I like a real paycheck for my Mambo work? Sure. I would love to have a full-time job doing Mambo development so that I could focus all my energies on it and help it to develop faster, but until that day comes I am fine with donating my time.
How much time do you usually spend on Mambo? - If you ask my wife she'd tell you “Way too much”. I'd say probably 3 to 4 hours per night after work and the majority of the weekends.
Do you have any specific goals for Mambo? - I guess the two big ones were to bring a better default editor and to give Mambo some database portability. The first one should see the light of day with Mambo 4.6 and hopefully we'll see the other one start to come to life with Mambo 5.0.
What keeps you motivated to work on Mambo? - My teammates and the community. I enjoy helping to develop what I believe to be the best CMS on the market. It affords me a great environment to learn and enhance my skills. Not to mention I get to interact with people from all over the world.
What is Mambo's killer app? Why? -
- MOStlyCE... just kidding. I had to say that because it seems like I spend most of my time on it. Remository is probably my favorite app. It adds file upload / download functionality that is needed by many sites.
What is your favorite add-on? -
- I actually don't utilize many add-ons, but its not because there aren't any good ones. There are tons of great add-ons out there! My hats off to the community for that. I guess my favorite and one that I utilize the most is probably Remository.
In addition to Mambo, what other Open Source applications do you use regularly? - I use Linux, Apache, PHP, MySQL, PostgreSQL, Gaim, Firefox, Evolution, Thunderbird, Subversion, Gimp, etc. I could go on for days. The amount of good quality open source software on the market is simply astounding.
What Operating system do you use & why?
- Gnu / Linux, of the Ubuntu and OpenSuse variety that is. I've been a Linux guys since 1996. I am a huge advocate of all things open source. Linux is secure, stable, and free. I love the flexibility and capability it affords me.
What’s your Mambo site look like?  http://opensourcepenguin.net I just had the template redone by Water & Stone. I could have hacked out a design on my own, but these guys do terrific work. I'm extremely pleased with the results. Which section of Mambo is underrated and should get more publicity?
- I guess I would have to say the level of customization one can achieve with Mambo. It truly is a remarkable system than can be twisted and turned to meet the needs of just about anyone. It can be utilized from the simplest of sites all the way up to complex ones. Perhaps Mambo doesn't have a piece of functionality out of the box that your site needs, but never fear. Try doing a quick search on MamboXchange.com. Mambo has a huge 3rd party community and chances are someone has already developed a plug-in that will achieve what your are looking for.
What do you think is still badly missing in Mambo? - Database portability. Never fear though it's coming. This is one of my main goals at the moment.
Are there particular opportunities for Mambo in your country? - I periodically scan the job postings for Mambo just to see what's out there. Interest seems to be on the rise and I think once Mambo can run on a number of database systems even more opportunities will exist. Once enterprises can utilize their existing infrastructure (i.e. chosen database platform) with Mambo we'll see adoption rates climb even higher than they already are. However, many people have already built successful businesses and websites around Mambo.
Personal Questions  Married, partner or still looking? - Married to a wonderful woman.
If you have a partner or children, how do they cope with your Mambo mania? - Wife and two kids. My wife understands my passion for technology and she is very supportive. As for the kids, we'll I am trying to pass my love for computers on to them. Can't tell if it is working just yet though. I do try to spend plenty of time with them playing around the house, watching movies, etc. Even if it is with laptop in hand.
 Do you have any pets?
How would you describe yourself?
- I don't sleep much, workout a few days a week, drink loads of coffee, love gin, spend about 17+ hours a day behind the computer, and the rest of time I've either got my nose in a tech book or I'm spending time with my family.
What are you passionate about? - Technology, Open Source software, Mambo, my family.... Those items pretty much consume all my time.
Which book is on your bedside table? - LOL... I don't have a beside table. I have a beside bookshelf. Lets see tons of books on databases, PHP, Javascript, CSS, Linux, etc. Right now I am reading “PHP 5 Objects, Patterns, and Practice”.
What’s the worst job you ever had? - I guess that would have to be when I was a fast food cook at a local gas station one summer during college. Dirty work, little pay!
What’s your dream job? - One that allows me to work on Mambo full-time and/or play with my favorite technologies (PHP & database systems).
What is your favorite place in the world? - I'm still working on that one. I'm pretty young so I still have many places to explore. Thus far I would have to say I really like San Francisco & London.
What's your favorite web site at the moment? - Well I do spend a great deal of time on the Mambo forums, but outside of that I really like osnews.com, slashdot.org, and digg.com.
Who or what in your life would you say influenced you most? - I am inspired by the open source greats like Linus Torvalds, Richard Stallman, Rasmus Lerdorf, Michael "Monty" Widenius, and David Axmark.
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