Re: update in sid has killed gnome-terminal
On Tue, 21 Oct 2003 at 22:34 GMT, David Lloyd penned:
<snip>
>
> Look, I knew *something* was wrong and I had my suspicions about
> libbonobo-activation4 but not about fontconfig. I'm not entirely adept
> at backtracking versions of packages (I always get the syntax wrong
> and I need to read more of the documentation) and half my damn system
> crashed.
I'm a little confused at this point. I originally assumed you were the
OP, but skimming the archives, it appears that you are not. I'm
guessing, then, that you are simply trying to defend the individual who
started this thread. But then you also mention your own troubles, to
which I see no previous reference in this thread. What am I missing?
The original poster posted a statement, not a question. The statement
was, "I just did an upgrade in a machine running sid and after that
can't star a gnome terminal anymore."
Now, granted, rudeness was probably uncalled for, but what legitemate
response would you expect? No version numbers or error messages were
given. No question was actually asked, so your guess is as good as mine
as to whether they want a work-around or simply want to know when the
package will be fixed. If they wanted the latter, there is no clear
answer.
> When you have half your system dead and you know the people you're
> asking for help know how to fix it [I was being hideously sarcastic
> when I labelled everyone dumbass geeks - geeks maybe, but dumb (i.e.
> stupid) no] but they're not saying so.
It's possible that the people you're asking for help know how to fix it,
or at least, that some of them do, but it's just as likely that they
don't know for sure. It's also quite possible that they know *how to go
about the research*, but haven't actually done the legwork themselves.
So that's the information they provide.
If half of your system is dead, I strongly doubt that anyone would
immediately know, based on a single problem report, what was wrong and,
more to the point, how to fix it.
I haven't seen a single message saying, "Neener, neener, I know the
answer but I won't tell you!" Maybe I haven't been paying enough
attention?
<snip>
>
> Rather than being absolutely and totally unhelpful to people who are
> brave enough to use Debian Sid--these guys and girls are the ones who
> will find problems, discover bugs and fix the bugs if they have the
> expertise (but finding them is very helpful too)--someone should write
> the "Debian Unstable -- Howto Report Problems Howto".
You're making a gross generalizaton here. I have *not* found the people
on this list to be unhelpful to those running sid -- in fact, quite the
opposite. What I have found is that people on this list, and every
technical list in which I've ever participated, expect that you at least
try the most basic trouble-shooting before you ask a question. If you
don't understand a command, have you read the man page and the provided
docs? If you are having a problem with an application, have you at
least bothered to figure out what version you're running?
No one wants to encourage brain-dead questions. Even a modicum of
effort is generally well-rewarded.
--
monique
Unless you need to share ultra-sensitive super-spy stuff with me, please
don't email me directly. I will most likely see your post before I read
your mail, anyway.
Reply to: