Re: packaging HOWTO
Hi,
[please feel free to ignore this diatribe, but please read to
the end if you feel like responding]
>>"Ioannis" == Ioannis Tambouras <ioannis@flinet.com> writes:
Ioannis> And that is the part I liked least and took out. It is not
Ioannis> logical to make people read all these documents in order to
Ioannis> make one simple package: binutils, gcc, cpp, libc5-dev, make,
Ioannis> dpkg-dev, debmake, sudo, cpio, file, patch, and pgp. Nobody
Ioannis> here (I think), has read them all. If I read that, I will
Ioannis> quit, and that is the end of that.
Hmm. This is just my opinion, now, but I deplore what I see to
be a trend for instant gratification, some things *are* hard, and
deservedly so, there are complexities involved in making things
flexible and powerful, these can not be easily glossed over while
retaining the power and flexibility.
Making packages is not trivial. It requires thought,
preparation, and care. The maintainer has to test the packages
locally, and ensure the distribution does not break when their
package is installed. This often tequires knowledge and
understanding of the system. Do we really want uninitiated people to
be putting software in Debian's name?
As an analogy: Automobiles are useful. Here in Mobile they are
almost required, since our oublic transport system is
non-existant. Automobiles are ubiquitous, and are fairly generally
accesible, and I agree averyone has a right to have access to an
automobile.
Do I want people on the road who have never learnt how to
drive? See, I need a car, ok? there's a dealer, ok? Where do I wanna
go today? I don't need no licence, I just wanna *drive*. I ain't a
driver by profession, I just want to drive to work, see?
I don't think that reading documentation to package
developement tools is too much to ask, (and we don't require them to
look at internal, just as in cars I don't need to know thermodynamics
to operate cars). You don't need to read them in one fell swoop
either.
If they are that much of a novice, I do not want them on the
team yet. So sorry.
Manoj,
feeling his years today.
--
We trained hard, but it seemed that every time we were beginning to
form up into teams, we would be reorganized. I was to learn later in
life we tend to meet any new situation by reorganizing, and a
wonderful method it can be for creating the illusion of progress
while producing confusion, inefficiency and demoralization. --
Petronious Arbiter
Manoj Srivastava <url:mailto:srivasta@acm.org>
Mobile, Alabama USA <url:http://www.datasync.com/%7Esrivasta/>
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