Greg Sabino Mullane wrote: > >> I know that not everyone is in to IRC and I for one have only flirted >> with it over the years but for the last 6 months or so I've frequented >> the #dbi channel and there are a number of knowledgeable and helpful >> people on it but there is a low representation from DBD authors/maintainers. > > You failed to mention what IRC server? I'm presuming /not/ freenode, but if > ain't freenode, it's unlikely you'll get a lot of people, DBD authors or > otherwise.
It is irc.perl.org (magnet) as Jens has already replied with and I don't see why if it is not freenode it is a gonna. > I also think DBI is a bit of a specialized topic, I don't fully agree with this. Based on the number of emails I get to my CPAN address I would say DBDs are used a lot and the development of DBDs is important to many people using them. One of the problems I've had throughout maintainership of DBD::ODBC is finding enough people to test it with different ODBC Drivers (something other DBD maintainers don't have the same problem with since there is only one [or a few]). The irc channel has helped me find other areas to broadcast new development releases and find potential testers. > but the only > alternative is #perl, which is way too busy. I agree, #perl is too busy. > Of course, people also get > DBI/DBD help on the friendly database channels such as #mysql and #postgresql. Which is great but I was talking about DBI/DBD development not problems with DBDs. Trying very hard to keep level headed about this I am finding myself under increasing pressure via rt reports and emails to my cpan address to cope with all the issues in DBD::ODBC. Not that I am saying other DBD authors/maintainers have an easier time (because I don't know) but DBD::ODBC is a little unusual in that there are dozens of drivers that may be used under DBD::ODBC which differs from most DBDs. I've found the knowledge and helpfulness of others on #dbi to be useful and lessen the burden of maintaining a DBD and it is obvious to me that if more DBD authors/maintainers were on it we could be more helpful to each other. There is obviously no requirement to be on #dbi but in the spirit of helping each other I thought it was useful to remind people about it. No big deal, just thought it was worth reminding people about #dbi and that it can be a useful resource. Martin
