About -Manfred-
User perspective:
How I got here? Well, like always it started from curiosity - a free HTPC software! What it can offer and can it match against other open-source projects?
So I started first lurking around and downloading all kind of versions whilst trying to get all working nicely together. As you might already guess it was everything than easy at those days; year must be something like 2005-2006 (can't remember anymore). After some experiment time I totally got rid of the idea of having a HTPC in living room as main source for media. MP was not ready yet for that task and Meedio failed to meet my expectations as well. Year 2007 however changed everything when urgent need of total media experience forced me back to MP arena. Like you can see from nick status it was May 2007 when joined to forum to get some help and enable some user submitted downloads.
And yes, in the meanwhile, MP evolved quite nicely

Other view - being a developer:
It is time to reveal some backgrounds about one developer behind the curtains. Why to spend your valuable free time for a project like MediaPortal you may ask.
Well, I have spent so many enjoyable hours with MP watching movies and listening music that it was time to pay something pack. There is no free lunch if you ask me. Actually my first touch with c# was with some corrections I made for a plugin. And there it started. Doing some plugins that were missing and patches for things that annoyed me finally brought me into the team. And I'm amazed about the dedication and passion of the team members!
From coding skills point of view, if there exists such a thing, it goes back to 80's when I got my first computer; Sinclair Spectrum 48 with rubbish... I mean rubber keyboard. What a machine!
Today best use of that is door stopper

Thanks for reading and try to bear with us developers

Cheers,
Manfred
P.S. Every change is an opportunity!