Re: Bug#841196: ITP: node-os-homedir -- Node.js 4 `os.homedir()` ponyfill

[Steve McIntyre <steve@einval.com>]

Pirate Praveen wrote:
>-=-=-=-=-=-
>
>On Tuesday 18 October 2016 08:45 PM, Steve McIntyre wrote:
>> That doesn't fix (or excuse) poor packaging, though.
>
>Are you saying this is RC? We have different level for bugs, this would
>be wishlist. I don't mind someone writing a better description.

I'd be very surprised if ftpmaster will accept a package with this
level of description, to be honest. Think about users who are trying
to search for packages in Debian - the description is all they have to
go on. I can see you're working on packaging lots of small packages
here, but the extra minute taken to even slightly improve the
packaging like this can't hurt. It's worth it.

>> Life's too short to go and fix all the crap in the world personally,
>> but we can keep certain minimum standards for what we as a group allow
>> into Debian. :-(
>
>But this is something we want in debian (grunt). I don't have to explain
>Free Software model to you. If you find a bug, report it and if you can
>send a patch, please do.

And now you've got me more worried about this lot. I *know* that
you're trying to get up the stack to packaging grunt for the sake of
other packages that need it, and I have a lot of sympathy for your
situation. You have a very big task ahead of you, and I don't envy you
that.

But... Once you've got all these (tiny|awful) lower-level packages
into Debian, are you going to have the time, effort or interest to
follow through and maintain them fully? That means supporting them,
providing security updates, etc. - not just uploading them once to get
your higher-level needs met and then leaving them abandoned.

I'm not suggesting you're a bad person, or anything like that. But I
do understand how hard it can be to maintain a lot of packages well,
and I've seen other people try to do it in the past, and fail. Do you
have many other people who are prepared to help with this project in
the long term?

>It seems there are so many people who focus on stopping other people...

We're not trying to *stop you*. We're worrying about the quality of
Debian here - it's one of our most important goals.

-- 
Steve McIntyre, Cambridge, UK.                                steve@einval.com
  Armed with "Valor": "Centurion" represents quality of Discipline,
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