Bug#364609: O: Gnus -- A versatile News and mailing list reader for Emacsen.
Package: wnpp
Severity: normal
Hi,
After seven and a half years of maintaining Gnus, I am having
to give away the package, on what I consider is a matter of
principle. My upload removing non-DFSG bits was rejected, on the
grounds that the upload renamed the source package name (the binary
package name remains Gnus).
I find myself unable to comply with calling the source package
Gnus, even though we remove all documentation from the package, and
pretending it is just a newer upstream version, since that implies to
people looking at the list of sources that this is perhaps unreleased
upstream source package -- even though upstream is vehemently opposed
to this course of action.
The package in Debian is currently tracking the development No
Gnus version. It is imperative that the version tracked not be
reverted to the versions shipping in the next release of Emacs, since
downgrading from NO *SHALL CAUSE INFORMATION LOSS*.
Additionally, as packaged, Gnus does not use _any_ helper
packages, so unless effort is spent with the build mechanism, or if
the next maintainer prefers to use helper packages, then this has to
be packaged from scratch.
Gnus is different from most elisp packages in that it also
provides pixmaps for the toolbar, and also images for smilies, so
special care has to be taken when creating the package. This is most
definitely not your run of the mill emacs package. Also, since we
track the development branch, the maintainer would have to be on the
devel list, and has to exercise judgement about which development
release is bug-free enough to include into Sid.
It is a bit of a wrench to give up this package, since I have
been the mainsiner since Micheal Dorman packaged it (and never
uploaded another version), but Gnus has non-free materiel, and
therefore needs a new upload _now_. I feel uncomfortable acceding to
practices I consider unethical, and I lack the motivation to fight
the ftp masters and the project on this issue.
Manoj
--
Money is the root of all evil, and man needs roots.
Manoj Srivastava <srivasta@debian.org> <http://www.debian.org/%7Esrivasta/>
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