Re: Taking care of existing packages
On Thu, 20 Aug 2009 10:33:54 -0300, Rogério Brito wrote: The reason why I posted to both is that I see a trend in -mentors that many new contributors seem to create an artificial need as a reason to get their contributions in the distribution and choose to package a new program. I agree with most parts of your analysis, esp. that teams could use help and that joining teams helps new contributors. I just think we also have to keep in mind that the proverbial itch that new contributors are trying to scratch, i.e. why they want to help in Debian in the first place, is that they are missing a piece of software they use or would like to use. Therefor an approach as (silly example) You can only get a new package sponsored after fixing 10 existing ones. might demotivate potential new contributors. Cheers, gregor -- .''`. http://info.comodo.priv.at/ -- GPG Key IDs: 0x00F3CFE4, 0x8649AA06 : :' : Debian GNU/Linux user, admin, developer - http://www.debian.org/ `. `' Member of VIBE!AT, SPI Inc., fellow of FSFE | http://got.to/quote/ `-NP: Rolling Stones: Beast Of Burden signature.asc Description: Digital signature
Re: Taking care of existing packages
In 20090821160945.gb22...@belanna.comodo.priv.at, gregor herrmann wrote: I just think we also have to keep in mind that the proverbial itch that new contributors are trying to scratch, i.e. why they want to help in Debian in the first place, is that they are missing a piece of software they use or would like to use. I'm not sure that's the most common itch anymore. I think more often it is that they want faster releases or bug fixes. Either that or continued availability of packages that are RFA, ITO, or O. -- Boyd Stephen Smith Jr. ,= ,-_-. =. b...@iguanasuicide.net ((_/)o o(\_)) ICQ: 514984 YM/AIM: DaTwinkDaddy `-'(. .)`-' http://iguanasuicide.net/\_/ signature.asc Description: This is a digitally signed message part.
Re: Taking care of existing packages
Hi, Gregor and everybody else.
On Aug 20 2009, gregor herrmann wrote:
[Any reason why this thread happens on both -devel and -mentors?]
I am not subscribed to -devel (only to -mentors; I asked to be CC'ed on
the original message).
The reason why I posted to both is that I see a trend in -mentors that
many new contributors seem to create an artificial need as a reason to
get their contributions in the distribution and choose to package a new
program.
They could, of course, be invited (if publicized more conspicuously, as
I put in my original message) to join/help an existing team as a first
step to learn the packaging issues.
The current approach has some drawbacks (a obviously non-exhaustive list):
* More existing packages means more need for QA, but we have
limited resources available. (Too many packages, none working
correctly or abandon-ware, as some would say).
* The existing teams need help from trivial things to complex
tasks. New contributors should be encouraged first to work with them
as apprentices and to, of course, raise the quality of the
existing software that we already have.
In other words, let's get what we already have in a good shape before
embarking in a new ship.
We usually don't eat something if that is still not prepared. Why
should software (or any other thing, for that matter) be different?
* Working with existing people teams helps:
+ Understand the modus operandi of collaborative software production.
+ Foster the mentoring process that the distribution needs to
keep a steady flux of good maintainers to assure the long-term
health of the project per se.
This is good both for the maintainer (explaining skills involve
what I will call here a mental organization of the tasks to
clearly see the distilled, main points of the process) and for the
apprentice, as practical knowledge is gained.
(...) true wealth is measured not by what you accumulate, but by
what you pass on to others. --- Larry Wall, 1999.
I am quite open to listening the opinions of others, so that we can
reach a better understanding of the problems involved.
And one point for meditation:
Apart from design/preference issues, would we have so many programs
written (which I would even call false starts) if we had
well-stablished programs that did their proposed goal well?
Perhaps we would, perhaps not.
Regards, Rogério Brito.
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Re: Taking care of existing packages
In 20090820133354.gb2...@ime.usp.br, Rogério Brito wrote: The reason why I posted to both is that I see a trend in -mentors that many new contributors seem to create an artificial need as a reason to get their contributions in the distribution and choose to package a new program. Instead your first step should be running wnpp-alert and helping maintain a package you already have installed. If you are lucky enough to have nothing reported by wnpp-alert or just can't help there, rc-alert is also a good place to start. Both of these tools should be better publicized. New packages are fine, but there seems to be a constant need for more maintainers of the packages that already exist. -- Boyd Stephen Smith Jr. ,= ,-_-. =. b...@iguanasuicide.net ((_/)o o(\_)) ICQ: 514984 YM/AIM: DaTwinkDaddy `-'(. .)`-' http://iguanasuicide.net/\_/ signature.asc Description: This is a digitally signed message part.
