Re: lintian: unknown-section unknown-priority

[Bob Hilliard <hilliard@flinet.com>]

"Darren O. Benham" <gecko@debian.org> writes:
 
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> On Thu, Oct 21, 1999 at 06:51:36PM -0400, Bob Hilliard wrote:
> >      I have just built a new package for dict-elements-19990120 to be
> > FHS compliant.  Lintian gives the following warnings/errors:
> > 
> > bob:vc-/0:dict-elements>lintian dict-elements_19990120-2_i386.changes
> > W: dict-elements: unknown-section Text
> > E: dict-elements: unknown-priority Optional
> >  
> >      The debian/control file includes:
> > 
> > bob:vc-/0:debian>less control 
> > Source: dict-elements
> > Section: Text
>            ^
> > Priority: Optional
>             ^
> 
> capitals...  linux, like all good OSes, are case sensitive

     True, but programs may intentionally ignore case.  From the
packaging manual:

4.1. Syntax of control files
----------------------------

.  .  .
 
     Field names are not case-sensitive, but it is usual to capitalise the
     fields using mixed case as shown below.

. .  .

     I have interpreted `fields' to refer to the _contents_ of the
fields, not the `Field names', but I see it could be interpreted
otherwise.  

     It is trivial to lower case these fields, and I have no problem
with doing so.  However, I note that dinstall or the override file
change Text and Optional to text and optional for the package file.

     I do have a problem with lintian's inconsistency, however.  I
have always capitalized the section and priority fields in my
packages, and lintian has never objected.  At the present time, I have
build trees for 10 packages in /usr/local.  All have the initial
letter of the section and priority fields capitalized.  I have just
re-checked, and Lintian 1,7 gives the error/warning message about
unknown-section or unknown priority for only one (dict-elements).  All
the others are lintian clean, except for messages relating to the FHS
transition.  (Two of these packages comply with Standards-Version
3.01; the others are still 2.4.1 or 2.5.1.)

Bob
 _
|_)  _  |_       Robert D. Hilliard    <hilliard@flinet.com>
|_) (_) |_)      Palm City, FL  USA    PGP Key ID: A8E40EB9