3 minutes reading time (578 words)

Meet a Joomler - Mark Fleeson

2023-March-Mark-Fleeson

This months interviewee has only joined volunteering in the Joomla project three years ago. And he is quite active online too, answering questions from Joomlers for example. He is the Team Lead of the Joomla Extensions Directory team, come and meet Mark Fleeson!

Tell us a little about yourself

My name is Mark Fleeson, I am 53 and I live on a small Island off the coast of the UK with my wife and two children. I have been coding since I was 13 and work as an independent developer and solutions creator and latterly a publisher.

How did you get involved with Joomla and the J! Community?

I’ve used Joomla to build websites since 1.5, and I used Mambo before that. I have written and modified existing extensions to suit the needs of my clients but generally not got involved in the wider Joomla Community. That all changed during the COVID lockdown.

In December 2020 I was offering help to other Joomla users on Facebook when I was contacted by Marco Dings who asked if I’d like to get involved in the project. Following a video call and talks with Marco, Wilco and Llewellyn, I joined the Joomla Extension Directory (JED) team to help develop the new JED 4 extension. Rolling on two years and I was made Team Leader of the JED though primarily my work is on JED 4.

What do you do for a day job, and if this includes Joomla, how?

My wife is an artist and author, and we have a retail shop, so, as part of helping her business I get involved in publishing, typesetting, design and also coding because of course her online shop is powered by Joomla!

I also work with various clients acting as a behind-the-scenes developer. My clients have complex Joomla extensions needing developing, maintaining or updating to Joomla 4 and I do the work for them to pass onto their clients!

Do you use Joomla in other ways?

I use Joomla for every website I get asked to help with, currently I’m developing two non-commercial websites, one for a local amateur dramatics group and one for a local church.

Are you involved in the Joomla community, apart from in your official position

I am involved in the assorted Facebook groups for Joomla! Including Joomla Extension Developers JUG and Website Design Company Owners JUG and occasionally get a chance to go to their zoom meetings. I also use Mattermost most days and contribute to the Documentation team, the Marketing team and the Joomla Experience Team.

How did Joomla change your life?

I love to solve problems, usually by using code. Joomla has allowed me to focus on that by giving me the tools and the opportunity to work in an environment that I love.

What did you learn and / or gain personally from being a J! Volunteer?

The knowledge from working within the JED 4 team and the help from so many amazing developers in Mattermost has been invaluable. To meet some of the ‘famous’ names of Joomla has been incredible. It is a wonderful collection of people striving to make Joomla better

Do you have a memorable Joomla-moment?

I remember the first time I demonstrated the new JED 4 ticket management system and its integration with the rest of JED. It was so positive as all of us who’ve had to use the current system could see how much time and effort it will save.

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