Re: Why are some Debian bugs ignored for a long time?
Hello,
On Fri, Aug 19, 2022 at 05:06:38PM -0400, Chuck Zmudzinski wrote:
> On 8/19/2022 4:44 PM, piorunz wrote:
> > On 19/08/2022 18:57, Chuck Zmudzinski wrote:
> > > I have noticed that some Debian bugs are ignored for a long time, sometimes even when the person who submitted the bug offered a patch. The Debian developers/maintainers sometimes don't even reply and therefore never explain why the proposed patch cannot be applied. Why is that the case with Debian developers/maintainers?
> >
> > Hi Chuck,
> >
> > Maybe because developers/maintainers are not paid by the hour, but mere
> > volunteers, don't you think?
>
> So that means "free" software written and maintained by volunteers will never be as
> stable and secure as software that is written by people who are paid by the hour.
This is an assertion of your own that does not automatically follow
from what piorunz wrote.
> That is, Debian software can *never* be as stable and secure as
> software that is written and maintained by people who are paid by
> the hour.
This is also an assertion of your own that does not automatically
follow from what piorunz wrote.
> you are saying if a Debian user experiences a bug in Debian
> software, Debian developers/maintainers do not have to fix it.
That is a direct consequence of the meaning of the term "volunteer";
you may as well have said, "water is wet". Volunteers cannot be
forced to do work, else they are not volunteers.
> If Debian developers/maintainers actively refuse to fix some bugs that inevitably arise
> by ignoring them, why would anyone depend on Debian software for anything important?
I would argue that the situation is similar (and often worse) in
every other free software project.
I would also argue that while you may pay a software vendor to care
about your use case, that can also come with different issues.
So really, life is not perfect, and we all do what we can to cope
with that. Things are not perfect in Debian nor elsewhere both
within and outside the free software world.
I think I know some of the bugs that you are referring to as I keep
on eye on those developments. A gentle ping on the relevant bugs to
ask where things are may be appropriate. That's really the strongest
thing you can do. Others may be tempted to try to drag more info out
of you to determine what the exact history is here and who is
right/wrong, but I don't think that will help anyone in these
particular cases.
Regards,
Andy
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