Bug#392362: [PROPOSAL] Add should not embed code from other packages

[Russ Allbery <rra@debian.org>]

Bill Allombert <Bill.Allombert@math.u-bordeaux1.fr> writes:
> On Thu, Nov 29, 2007 at 09:02:43PM -0800, Russ Allbery wrote:

>> Okay, here's yet another try at the wording for this that tries to
>> exclude Autotools and friends without making the wording too awkward.
>> Word-smithing welcome (as are any other comments).

> I am not objecting to this wording, but I am afraid it covers situation
> where there is no easy solution, in particular, it does not offer
> solutions when the convenience copy is not a library. I think that
> generally, the severity of a policy violation should differ whether
> there is an 'easy' way out or not. However, it might be that the word
> 'convenience copy' address this concerns. (A embedded copy is a
> convenience copy as long as you could reasonnably do without it).

Yeah, I think the convenience word does help there.  For example, I share
some common support code between multiple packages, but I wouldn't
consider this requirement relevant to that, since it's not a convenience
copy of code from other packages.  It's code that just happens to be
duplicated across multiple packages but which has no independent existence
(and different packages often have subtlely different versions).

Also, this is where "should" comes in; if there's a good reason not to do
it, one can not do it.

-- 
Russ Allbery (rra@debian.org)               <http://www.eyrie.org/~eagle/>