Bug#96597: changing policy requirements for debian native packages to _MUST_
dh_installchangelogs (debhelper-3.4.11) currently bails if one attempts
to install a non-debian changelog to
/usr/share/doc/<package>/changelog.gz in a debian-native package. Joey
Hess has mentioned that various tools expect the changelog.gz for
debian-native packages to parsable as debian-style changelogs. Given
this expectation, one of two things should be done; either policy should
be changed to explicitly allow multiple changelogs for debian-native
packages, or explicitly disallow more than 1.
The current interpretation of it (section 13.8), for debian-native
packages, reads as "if the package only has 1 changelog, put it in
changelog.gz". This should be changed to something like:
"If the package is a debian-native package, the changelog installed in
/usr/share/doc/<package>/changelog.gz MUST be the debian changelog.
If there are additional changelogs, they may be installed in the same
directory, prefixed with 'changelog.'. For example, a single additional
upstream changelog may be named 'changelog.Upstream.gz'. If upstream has
changelogs on a per-directory basis, they may be named
changelog.<subdirectory>.gz. Naming a changelog 'changelog.Debian.gz' is
not suggested for debian-native packages, as it may confuse users."
The exact quote from the current policy is:
"If the package has only one changelog which is used both as the Debian
changelog and the upstream one because there is no separate upstream
maintainer then that changelog should usually be installed as
/usr/share/doc/package/changelog.gz; if there is a separate upstream
maintainer, but no upstream changelog, then the Debian changelog should
still be called changelog.Debian.gz."
--
"I think a lot of the basis of the open source movement comes from
procrastinating students..."
-- Andrew Tridgell <http://www.linux-mag.com/2001-07/tridgell_04.html>
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