Re: IMPORTANT: Do live Debian images have a future?
On Mon, 2017-06-26 at 15:08 +0100, Steve McIntyre wrote:
...
> While the bugs are annoying, what worries me more is that they were
> only spotted in release builds. There had been testing versions of
> live images available for multiple weeks beforehand, presumably with
> the same bugs included. (Almost) none of them reported. This shows
> that we don't have enough people using these live images and/or
> caring
> about filing bugs.
...
Having been using debian-cd for close on 20 years and an active
GNU/Linux vendor for that time I have an appreciation of the work by everyone involved in the release.
Debian is unusual in the way it organizes its releases. Its primary
objective is to get the archive right and installation media is an add-
on that follows this. Other distributions focus on the installation
media and the archive is secondary to this objective.
While I would not use Debian live media for my installations no matter
how good they were, my customer base has moved on. The expectation is
that any GNU/Linux system should be installed using a live disc. The
current Debian live CD offerings are just not up to an acceptable
standard and so I reluctantly do not offer them for sale.
After watching the protracted struggles many distributions have before
they release I marvel at how Debian hopes to release live CDs within a
few days after the archive has been stabilized. This is one element of
the problem, lack of time. Another is a lack of interest in the
project. I suspect that a large proportion of Debian users have the
same negative attitude to live discs as I do.
If Debian is to be a "retail" distribution alongside offerings like
Ubuntu, Linux Mint et al, then live discs are needed. My suggestion is
that the live media should not be released until they are ready, which
may be several weeks after the official release. This would enable a
more systematic and relaxed testing and feedback programme. People are
busy with testing, bug-squashing and many other tasks up to the formal
release so to expect them to test live CDs during this period is a bit
much, but after the rush is over ...
Phil.
--
Philip Charles; 39a Paterson Street, Abbotsford, Dunedin, New Zealand
+64 3 488 2818 Mobile 027 663 4453 philipc@copyleft.co.nz
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