Re: New README.source documentation for Debian packages

[Goswin von Brederlow <goswin-v-b@web.de>]

Russ Allbery <rra@debian.org> writes:

> Goswin von Brederlow <goswin-v-b@web.de> writes:
>> Russ Allbery <rra@debian.org> writes:
>
>>> This new recommendation is *not* RC for lenny, only a recommendation.
>>> However, it is still a recommendation that most affected packages don't
>>> currently follow, so I wanted to give the development community a
>>> heads-up on this change.
>
>> Can this be savely ignored when it is planed to switch over to the 3.0
>> (quilt) format as soon as it is allowed and thereby replacing the
>> current patch system?
>
> Switching to the 3.0 (quilt) format will satisfy the requirement that one
> can simply run dpkg-source -x on the source package, make changes, and run
> dpkg-buildpackage, which means that, according to this new Policy, no
> additional documentation is required.  So the short version is yes, unless
> the transition to that format is expected to take some time.
>
> If your package build system is particularly complicated, or if you have
> to do another upload for lenny anyway, it may be nice for the security
> team to include a README.source for the existing package layout for lenny,
> but this is certainly *not* required and we are not expecting maintainers
> to address this issue for lenny.
>
> Due largely to lack of manpower, Policy changes are a bit desynchronized
> from our release cycle right now.  In order for this to really be
> something for lenny, the Policy update would have had to have been
> published about six months ago; now, it's really too late to expect lenny
> to be affected by this change.

Ok, lets hope ftpmaster will allow 3.0 format soon after lenny then.
Meanwhile I will stick with adding a README.source if I need an upload
but not upload just to add it.

MfG
        Goswin