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Re: Is Ubuntu a debian derivative or is it a fork?



On 5/31/05, Andrew Suffield <asuffield@debian.org> wrote:
> > Also, when Ubuntu makes improvements to packages how do those
> > improvements flow back to Debian?
> 
> They generally don't. Ubuntu considers it more effective to spend
> their time on PR to make people think they are giving stuff back, than
> to actually do it; it generates more 'goodwill', since most people
> won't bother to check. This thread will probably become a good
> example, most of the others did.

If you've been around d-d awhile, you know not to take Andrew's
randomly directed flame cannon very seriously.

I have no relationship to Debian and Ubuntu other than satisfied
industrial-scale user (and kibitzer), but I think it's inane to kvetch
about Ubuntu's pattern of "giving stuff back" over the last year. 
Software process is hard work, especially when you add an extra layer
of judgment calls between upstream and release engineering.

What is the point of, say, harassing the glibc maintainer to take a
patch against the version in sid, when he's planning on jumping to
2.3.4 as soon as sarge releases?  If you want evidence on which to
judge the sincerity of Ubuntu's "giving back", watch what happens
post-sarge.  I'm optimistic, largely because the Ubuntu folks seem to
have thick enough skins to shrug off attitudes like Andrew's.

Cheers,
- Michael



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