[ On Saturday, December 18, 2004 at 16:33:56 (-0500), Todd Vierling wrote: ]
> Subject: Re: From PR to pkgsrc
>
> There are some folks who periodically go through gnats and move packages to
> pkgsrc-wip (or pkgsrc, if there's time to review them), but really, there is
> quite simply a _lack_of_time_.

I still the lack of time is somewhat of a mis-perception -- if more of
the pkgsrc-wip folks could be encouraged and facilitated somehow to help
with PRs, then there shouldn't be as much of a lack of time to deal with
PRs.

From what you've said GNATs is clearly not going to be officially
deprecated despite the underlying desire to get more use out of
pkgsrc-wip.

So, some of the scarce resources will still have to be directed in part
to handling PRs -- one way or another -- or else more and more people
will grow increasingly frustrated from the lack of attention to their
PRs.


>  We'd really like to see more people use
> pkgsrc-wip directly, as its environment makes for a much more collaborative
> interaction.

Yeah, well the problem is that particular form of collaboration, and the
additional related interactions it requires, takes a _lot_ more
investment of learning and time on the part of the collaborator.

And it's still a two-step process as well.  I.e. it still takes
considerable time and effort to manage and to get inputs from A to B.
It might be easier at some levels (with the load spread over more
shoulders so to speak), and the quality might even be better, but if
it's still going to be a division of resources then its not going to be
as efficient, especially not if it results in ever more re-invention and
duplication of effort because submissions to GNATS sit idle.


> Really, honestly, go get yourself registered for pkgsrc-wip and move any new
> package submissions or updates-with-major-reworks there.  Once committed,
> ask for a quick review on the pkgsrc-wip-review mailing list.  You'll be
> glad you did.

No, thanks, but I really do not have the time to get involved with
pkgsrc-wip.  It's not something I could integrate into my production
environment, and it's only useful from my perspective for new package
submissions.  Why would I go to all that effort when I can far more
easily just shar up my new submissions and load into send-pr without any
additional effort?

Many other things I want to submit would still have to go through GNATS
anyway since they are changes to the core .mk files and other scripts.

I.e. I'm just not going to split my efforts across two types of
channels, especially not when one's got a plethora of other mehanisms
(the collaboration part) and information sources (yet more mailing
lists, etc.) to deal with, and all for almost zero gain from my
perspective (either way I make available the work I've done).

I obviously don't even have time to submit in any useful way many of the
changes I've got in my own local pkgsrc tree (or there'd be a lot more
PRs from me!), but that's another story....  :-)

I really doubt that many more folks will have engough time to get
involved with pkgsrc-wip either, or if they do then they'll be trading
time and effort from other valuable thing's they've done before.

-- 
						Greg A. Woods

+1 416 218-0098                  VE3TCP            RoboHack <woods@robohack.ca>
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