gnome 1 packages up for adoption

[Thomas Bushnell BSG <tb@becket.net>]

I have been maintaining the following gnome-1 support packages:

  bonobo gal0.x gnome-libs gnome-print gtkhtml gwrapguile imlib
  libcapplet libglade oaf

I have been doing so because gnucash (which I maintain) was the last
major gnome-1 package, and the gnome maintainers (quite reasonably)
did not want to maintain gnome-1 anymore.

However, there are a significant number of packages based on gnome-1
which are still in Debian, quite a few of which still see active
maintenance.

So I believe that it would be premature to remove the gnome-1
libraries from Debian.  Indeed, I am not sure I agree with them being
in oldlibs, given the existence of this many packages which use them,
especially since it is not some kind of trivial matter in general to
update a program to use gnome-2.  But that's not my determination to
make.

However, I will not be willing to maintain these support packages once
the gnome-2 gnucash migrates into testing.  Other than normal
get-into-testing transition issues, the blocker for that is the
upstream release of gnucash 2.0, which is expected in the next several
weeks.

At that point, I will be orphaning all these packages.  I stress,
however, that it would not be appropriate to remove the packages
without communication with all the folks who are currently depending
upon them.  If someone wants to undertake that task, I welcome them to
it!

To repeat, in executive summary:

* There are many gnome-1 support packages, which I maintain, which are
  still widely used in Debian;
* I am filing an RFA for these packages today;
* Once gnucash 2.0 migrates into testing, I will be orphaning these
  packages;
* It is not appropriate to delete these packages without speaking to
  the maintainers who are currently depending on them. 

Thomas