Re: RFS: mobile-broadband-provider-info (updated package)

[Didier Raboud <odyx@debian.org>]

Paul Wise wrote:

> This is why I think packaging it at all is possibly a bad idea since
> people running Debian stable/oldstable will always have old
> information. It would be better if the software that uses it were to
> be responsible for downloading it periodically.

I respectfully disagree.

If we take that path, then we might as well allow usb-modeswitch to download 
its latest "modeswitching" strategies for the 3G dongles that need one. Oh 
and usb-modeswitch could then also update its binary too as "anyone wants 
the latest" anyway.

Having that type of data packaged and uploaded to our archive puts trust on 
its contents. You don't get any close to that level of trust with programs 
that download random stuff from the Internet for their uptodatedness; 
especially when the "random stuff" is critical for the Internet access (as 
mobile-broadband-provider-info can be). 

In fact, I would be suprised if our Stable Release Managers were to refuse 
updates of such data packages.

Cheers,

OdyX