1 # SOME DESCRIPTIVE TITLE
2 # Copyright (C) YEAR Free Software Foundation, Inc.
3 # FIRST AUTHOR <EMAIL@ADDRESS>, YEAR.
8 "Project-Id-Version: PACKAGE VERSION\n"
9 "POT-Creation-Date: 2008-03-05 18:04+0900\n"
10 "PO-Revision-Date: YEAR-MO-DA HO:MI+ZONE\n"
11 "Last-Translator: FULL NAME <EMAIL@ADDRESS>\n"
12 "Language-Team: LANGUAGE <LL@li.org>\n"
14 "Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8\n"
15 "Content-Transfer-Encoding: ENCODING\n"
17 # type: Content of: <chapter><title>
18 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:7
19 msgid "Beyond Packaging"
22 # type: Content of: <chapter><para>
23 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:9
25 "Debian is about a lot more than just packaging software and maintaining "
26 "those packages. This chapter contains information about ways, often really "
27 "critical ways, to contribute to Debian beyond simply creating and "
28 "maintaining packages."
31 # type: Content of: <chapter><para>
32 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:14
34 "As a volunteer organization, Debian relies on the discretion of its members "
35 "in choosing what they want to work on and in choosing the most critical "
36 "thing to spend their time on."
39 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><title>
40 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:19
44 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
45 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:21
47 "We encourage you to file bugs as you find them in Debian packages. In fact, "
48 "Debian developers are often the first line testers. Finding and reporting "
49 "bugs in other developers' packages improves the quality of Debian."
52 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
53 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:26
55 "Read the <ulink url=\"&url-bts-report;\">instructions for reporting bugs</"
56 "ulink> in the Debian <ulink url=\"&url-bts;\">bug tracking system</ulink>."
59 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
60 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:31
62 "Try to submit the bug from a normal user account at which you are likely to "
63 "receive mail, so that people can reach you if they need further information "
64 "about the bug. Do not submit bugs as root."
67 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
68 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:36
70 "You can use a tool like <citerefentry> <refentrytitle>reportbug</"
71 "refentrytitle> <manvolnum>1</manvolnum> </citerefentry> to submit bugs. It "
72 "can automate and generally ease the process."
75 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
76 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:41
78 "Make sure the bug is not already filed against a package. Each package has "
79 "a bug list easily reachable at <literal>http://&bugs-host;/"
80 "<replaceable>packagename</replaceable></literal> Utilities like "
81 "<citerefentry> <refentrytitle>querybts</refentrytitle> <manvolnum>1</"
82 "manvolnum> </citerefentry> can also provide you with this information (and "
83 "<command>reportbug</command> will usually invoke <command>querybts</command> "
84 "before sending, too)."
87 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
88 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:50
90 "Try to direct your bugs to the proper location. When for example your bug "
91 "is about a package which overwrites files from another package, check the "
92 "bug lists for <emphasis>both</emphasis> of those packages in order to avoid "
93 "filing duplicate bug reports."
96 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
97 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:56
99 "For extra credit, you can go through other packages, merging bugs which are "
100 "reported more than once, or tagging bugs `fixed' when they have already been "
101 "fixed. Note that when you are neither the bug submitter nor the package "
102 "maintainer, you should not actually close the bug (unless you secure "
103 "permission from the maintainer)."
106 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
107 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:63
109 "From time to time you may want to check what has been going on with the bug "
110 "reports that you submitted. Take this opportunity to close those that you "
111 "can't reproduce anymore. To find out all the bugs you submitted, you just "
112 "have to visit <literal>http://&bugs-host;/from:<replaceable><your-email-"
113 "addr></replaceable></literal>."
116 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><title>
117 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:70
118 msgid "Reporting lots of bugs at once (mass bug filing)"
121 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
122 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:72
124 "Reporting a great number of bugs for the same problem on a great number of "
125 "different packages — i.e., more than 10 — is a deprecated practice. Take "
126 "all possible steps to avoid submitting bulk bugs at all. For instance, if "
127 "checking for the problem can be automated, add a new check to <systemitem "
128 "role=\"package\">lintian</systemitem> so that an error or warning is emitted."
131 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
132 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:79
134 "If you report more than 10 bugs on the same topic at once, it is recommended "
135 "that you send a message to &email-debian-devel; describing your intention "
136 "before submitting the report, and mentioning the fact in the subject of your "
137 "mail. This will allow other developers to verify that the bug is a real "
138 "problem. In addition, it will help prevent a situation in which several "
139 "maintainers start filing the same bug report simultaneously."
142 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
143 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:87
145 "Please use the programms <command>dd-list</command> and if appropriate "
146 "<command>whodepends</command> (from the package devscripts) to generate a "
147 "list of all affected packages, and include the output in your mail to &email-"
151 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
152 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:93
154 "Note that when sending lots of bugs on the same subject, you should send the "
155 "bug report to <email>maintonly@&bugs-host;</email> so that the bug report is "
156 "not forwarded to the bug distribution mailing list."
159 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><title>
160 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:102
161 msgid "Quality Assurance effort"
164 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><title>
165 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:104
169 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
170 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:106
172 "Even though there is a dedicated group of people for Quality Assurance, QA "
173 "duties are not reserved solely for them. You can participate in this effort "
174 "by keeping your packages as bug-free as possible, and as lintian-clean (see "
175 "<xref linkend=\"lintian\"/> ) as possible. If you do not find that "
176 "possible, then you should consider orphaning some of your packages (see "
177 "<xref linkend=\"orphaning\"/> ). Alternatively, you may ask the help of "
178 "other people in order to catch up with the backlog of bugs that you have "
179 "(you can ask for help on &email-debian-qa; or &email-debian-devel;). At the "
180 "same time, you can look for co-maintainers (see <xref linkend="
181 "\"collaborative-maint\"/> )."
184 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><title>
185 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:120
186 msgid "Bug squashing parties"
189 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
190 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:122
192 "From time to time the QA group organizes bug squashing parties to get rid of "
193 "as many problems as possible. They are announced on &email-debian-devel-"
194 "announce; and the announcement explains which area will be the focus of the "
195 "party: usually they focus on release critical bugs but it may happen that "
196 "they decide to help finish a major upgrade (like a new perl version which "
197 "requires recompilation of all the binary modules)."
200 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
201 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:131
203 "The rules for non-maintainer uploads differ during the parties because the "
204 "announcement of the party is considered prior notice for NMU. If you have "
205 "packages that may be affected by the party (because they have release "
206 "critical bugs for example), you should send an update to each of the "
207 "corresponding bug to explain their current status and what you expect from "
208 "the party. If you don't want an NMU, or if you're only interested in a "
209 "patch, or if you will deal yourself with the bug, please explain that in the "
213 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
214 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:140
216 "People participating in the party have special rules for NMU, they can NMU "
217 "without prior notice if they upload their NMU to DELAYED/3-day at least. "
218 "All other NMU rules apply as usually; they should send the patch of the NMU "
219 "to the BTS (to one of the open bugs fixed by the NMU, or to a new bug, "
220 "tagged fixed). They should also respect any particular wishes of the "
224 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
225 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:147
227 "If you don't feel confident about doing an NMU, just send a patch to the "
228 "BTS. It's far better than a broken NMU."
231 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><title>
232 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:155
233 msgid "Contacting other maintainers"
236 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
237 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:157
239 "During your lifetime within Debian, you will have to contact other "
240 "maintainers for various reasons. You may want to discuss a new way of "
241 "cooperating between a set of related packages, or you may simply remind "
242 "someone that a new upstream version is available and that you need it."
245 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
246 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:163
248 "Looking up the email address of the maintainer for the package can be "
249 "distracting. Fortunately, there is a simple email alias, <literal><"
250 "package>@&packages-host;</literal>, which provides a way to email the "
251 "maintainer, whatever their individual email address (or addresses) may be. "
252 "Replace <literal><package></literal> with the name of a source or a "
256 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
257 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:171
259 "You may also be interested in contacting the persons who are subscribed to a "
260 "given source package via <xref linkend=\"pkg-tracking-system\"/> . You can "
261 "do so by using the <literal><package>@&pts-host;</literal> email "
265 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><title>
266 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:180
267 msgid "Dealing with inactive and/or unreachable maintainers"
270 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
271 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:182
273 "If you notice that a package is lacking maintenance, you should make sure "
274 "that the maintainer is active and will continue to work on their packages. "
275 "It is possible that they are not active any more, but haven't registered out "
276 "of the system, so to speak. On the other hand, it is also possible that "
277 "they just need a reminder."
280 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
281 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:189
283 "There is a simple system (the MIA database) in which information about "
284 "maintainers who are deemed Missing In Action is recorded. When a member of "
285 "the QA group contacts an inactive maintainer or finds more information about "
286 "one, this is recorded in the MIA database. This system is available in /org/"
287 "qa.debian.org/mia on the host qa.debian.org, and can be queried with a tool "
288 "known as <command>mia-query</command>. Use <command>mia-query --help</"
289 "command> to see how to query the database. If you find that no information "
290 "has been recorded about an inactive maintainer yet, or that you can add more "
291 "information, you should generally proceed as follows."
294 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
295 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:200
297 "The first step is to politely contact the maintainer, and wait a reasonable "
298 "time for a response. It is quite hard to define reasonable time, but it is "
299 "important to take into account that real life is sometimes very hectic. One "
300 "way to handle this would be to send a reminder after two weeks."
303 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
304 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:206
306 "If the maintainer doesn't reply within four weeks (a month), one can assume "
307 "that a response will probably not happen. If that happens, you should "
308 "investigate further, and try to gather as much useful information about the "
309 "maintainer in question as possible. This includes:"
312 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><itemizedlist><listitem><para>
313 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:214
315 "The echelon information available through the <ulink url=\"&url-debian-db;"
316 "\">developers' LDAP database</ulink>, which indicates when the developer "
317 "last posted to a Debian mailing list. (This includes uploads via debian-*-"
318 "changes lists.) Also, remember to check whether the maintainer is marked as "
319 "on vacation in the database."
322 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><itemizedlist><listitem><para>
323 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:223
325 "The number of packages this maintainer is responsible for, and the condition "
326 "of those packages. In particular, are there any RC bugs that have been open "
327 "for ages? Furthermore, how many bugs are there in general? Another important "
328 "piece of information is whether the packages have been NMUed, and if so, by "
332 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><itemizedlist><listitem><para>
333 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:232
335 "Is there any activity of the maintainer outside of Debian? For example, they "
336 "might have posted something recently to non-Debian mailing lists or news "
340 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
341 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:239
343 "A bit of a problem are packages which were sponsored — the maintainer is not "
344 "an official Debian developer. The echelon information is not available for "
345 "sponsored people, for example, so you need to find and contact the Debian "
346 "developer who has actually uploaded the package. Given that they signed the "
347 "package, they're responsible for the upload anyhow, and are likely to know "
348 "what happened to the person they sponsored."
351 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
352 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:247
354 "It is also allowed to post a query to &email-debian-devel;, asking if anyone "
355 "is aware of the whereabouts of the missing maintainer. Please Cc: the "
356 "person in question."
359 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
360 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:252
362 "Once you have gathered all of this, you can contact &email-mia;. People on "
363 "this alias will use the information you provide in order to decide how to "
364 "proceed. For example, they might orphan one or all of the packages of the "
365 "maintainer. If a package has been NMUed, they might prefer to contact the "
366 "NMUer before orphaning the package — perhaps the person who has done the NMU "
367 "is interested in the package."
370 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
371 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:260
373 "One last word: please remember to be polite. We are all volunteers and "
374 "cannot dedicate all of our time to Debian. Also, you are not aware of the "
375 "circumstances of the person who is involved. Perhaps they might be "
376 "seriously ill or might even have died — you do not know who may be on the "
377 "receiving side. Imagine how a relative will feel if they read the e-mail of "
378 "the deceased and find a very impolite, angry and accusing message!"
381 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
382 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:268
384 "On the other hand, although we are volunteers, we do have a responsibility. "
385 "So you can stress the importance of the greater good — if a maintainer does "
386 "not have the time or interest anymore, they should let go and give the "
387 "package to someone with more time."
390 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
391 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:274
393 "If you are interested in working in the MIA team, please have a look at the "
394 "README file in /org/qa.debian.org/mia on qa.debian.org where the technical "
395 "details and the MIA procedures are documented and contact &email-mia;."
398 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><title>
399 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:282
400 msgid "Interacting with prospective Debian developers"
403 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><para>
404 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:284
406 "Debian's success depends on its ability to attract and retain new and "
407 "talented volunteers. If you are an experienced developer, we recommend that "
408 "you get involved with the process of bringing in new developers. This "
409 "section describes how to help new prospective developers."
412 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><title>
413 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:290
414 msgid "Sponsoring packages"
417 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
418 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:292
420 "Sponsoring a package means uploading a package for a maintainer who is not "
421 "able to do it on their own, a new maintainer applicant. Sponsoring a "
422 "package also means accepting responsibility for it."
425 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
426 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:303
428 "New maintainers usually have certain difficulties creating Debian packages — "
429 "this is quite understandable. That is why the sponsor is there, to check "
430 "the package and verify that it is good enough for inclusion in Debian. "
431 "(Note that if the sponsored package is new, the ftpmasters will also have to "
432 "inspect it before letting it in.)"
435 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
436 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:310
438 "Sponsoring merely by signing the upload or just recompiling is <emphasis "
439 "role=\"strong\">definitely not recommended</emphasis>. You need to build "
440 "the source package just like you would build a package of your own. "
441 "Remember that it doesn't matter that you left the prospective developer's "
442 "name both in the changelog and the control file, the upload can still be "
446 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
447 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:317
449 "If you are an application manager for a prospective developer, you can also "
450 "be their sponsor. That way you can also verify how the applicant is "
451 "handling the 'Tasks and Skills' part of their application."
454 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><title>
455 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:324
456 msgid "Managing sponsored packages"
459 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
460 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:326
462 "By uploading a sponsored package to Debian, you are certifying that the "
463 "package meets minimum Debian standards. That implies that you must build "
464 "and test the package on your own system before uploading."
467 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
468 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:331
470 "You cannot simply upload a binary <filename>.deb</filename> from the "
471 "sponsoree. In theory, you should only ask for the diff file and the "
472 "location of the original source tarball, and then you should download the "
473 "source and apply the diff yourself. In practice, you may want to use the "
474 "source package built by your sponsoree. In that case, you have to check "
475 "that they haven't altered the upstream files in the <filename>.orig.tar.gz</"
476 "filename> file that they're providing."
479 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
480 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:340
482 "Do not be afraid to write the sponsoree back and point out changes that need "
483 "to be made. It often takes several rounds of back-and-forth email before "
484 "the package is in acceptable shape. Being a sponsor means being a mentor."
487 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
488 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:345
489 msgid "Once the package meets Debian standards, build and sign it with"
492 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><screen>
493 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:347
497 "dpkg-buildpackage -k<replaceable>KEY-ID</replaceable>\n"
500 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
501 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:351
503 "before uploading it to the incoming directory. Of course, you can also use "
504 "any part of your <replaceable>KEY-ID</replaceable>, as long as it's unique "
505 "in your secret keyring."
508 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
509 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:356
511 "The Maintainer field of the <filename>control</filename> file and the "
512 "<filename>changelog</filename> should list the person who did the packaging, "
513 "i.e., the sponsoree. The sponsoree will therefore get all the BTS mail "
517 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
518 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:362
520 "If you prefer to leave a more evident trace of your sponsorship job, you can "
521 "add a line stating it in the most recent changelog entry."
524 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
525 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:366
527 "You are encouraged to keep tabs on the package you sponsor using <xref "
528 "linkend=\"pkg-tracking-system\"/> ."
531 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><title>
532 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:372
533 msgid "Advocating new developers"
536 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
537 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:374
539 "See the page about <ulink url=\"&url-newmaint-advocate;\">advocating a "
540 "prospective developer</ulink> at the Debian web site."
543 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><title>
544 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:381
545 msgid "Handling new maintainer applications"
548 # type: Content of: <chapter><section><section><para>
549 #: beyond-pkging.dbk:383
551 "Please see <ulink url=\"&url-newmaint-amchecklist;\">Checklist for "
552 "Application Managers</ulink> at the Debian web site."