Package: www.debian.org
Severity: wishlist
Tags: patch
in the thread starting at [1] it became clear that the language on the
new-maintainer corner isn't clear enough. Attached is the proposed
rewording worked out in the subthread starting at [2].
[1] http://lists.debian.org/debian-i18n/2006/04/threads.html
[2] http://lists.debian.org/debian-i18n/2006/04/msg00088.html
--
Cheers, cobaco
/"\ ASCII Ribbon Campaign
\ / No proprietary formats in attachments without request
X i.e. *NO* WORD, POWERPOINT or EXCEL documents
/ \ Respect Open Standards
http://www.fsf.org/philosophy/no-word-attachments.html
http://www.goldmark.org/netrants/no-word/attach.html
--- newmaint.wml.orig 2006-04-26 15:25:16.000000000 +0200 +++ newmaint.wml 2006-04-26 15:35:00.000000000 +0200 @@ -1,66 +1,64 @@ #use wml::debian::template title="Debian New Maintainers' Corner" BARETITLE="true" -<p>The Debian New Maintainer process is a series of required proceedings to -become a Debian Developer. On these web pages, prospective Debian Developers -can find all the details of applying, the process details, and how to track -the progress of ongoing applications.</p> - -<p>Many people wish to contribute to Debian, though not all know that you -<em>don't</em> need to be an official developer to do so. -<a href="#Sponsor">Sponsors</a> can integrate work of non-developers and -do so on a frequent basis. Some ways of contributing (translating, -writing documentation and reporting bugs) can be done by everyone and -don't require developer status.</p> - -<div class="quoteblock"> - <div class="preimg"><img src="../../logos/officiallogo-nd-25.jpg" alt="" - width="12" height="24"></div> - - <div> - <blockquote><p> - The Debian design process is open to ensure that the system is of the - highest quality and that it reflects the needs of the user community. - </p></blockquote> - <cite> - -- "The Debian Linux Manifesto" - </cite> - </div> -</div> - -<p>The Debian Project is an open community and welcomes everyone who wants -to use our distribution or even tries to help us. Nevertheless, appointing -new developers is controlled by a very strict and thorough process: Every -official Debian developer is associated with Debian, is allowed to vote -about issues regarding the whole project, can log in on most systems -that keep Debian running and has upload permissions for <em>all packages</em>. -Giving this kind of access is accompanied by a great deal of trust, as we -heavily depend on our secure infrastructure. -<br /> -This is not meant to discourage people interested in becoming a registered -developer, but it is meant to explain why we want people to contribute -before applying and why the New Maintainer checks take so much time. -<br /> -It's also important to understand that the New Maintainer process is part -of Debian's Quality Assurance efforts. Prospective developers doing a lot -of good work in a short time haven't shown that they are able to do this -in the long term. Finding developers who have enough free time for -their Debian tasks is complicated, so checking that Applicants are able -to sustain their work is important. +<p>The Debian New Member process, is the process of becoming an official +Debian Developer (DD). These webpages are the place were prospective Debian +Developers can find all the details on applying to become a DD, the +different steps of the process, and how to track the process of their ongoing +application.</p> + +<p>(<em>Note:</em> the 'developer' in DD basically means 'someone involved with +improving Debian in some way'. This might mean package maintainer, +translator, documentation writer, website maintainer, or ...)</p> + +<p>The first important point to make is that you do <em>NOT</em> need to be a +DD in order to help improving Debian, in fact you should already have a track +record of earlier contributions to Debian before you start the New Member +process.</p> + +<p href="#non-maintainer-contributions">Debian is an open community and welcomes +everyone who wants to use or help improve our distribution. As a non-member you +can: +<ul> + <li>maintain packages through a <a href="#Sponsor">sponsor</a></li> + <li>create and/or review translations</li> + <li>create or improve documentation</li> + <li><a href="../website">help maintain the website</a></li> + <li>help with handling bugs (by providing patches, filing good bugs, + confirming the existence of the bug, finding ways to reproduce the problem, + ...)</li> + <li>being an active member of a packaging team (e.g. debian-qt-kde or + debian-gnome) </li> + <li>being an active member of a subproject (e.g. debian-installer, or + debian-desktop)</li> + <li>...</li> +</ul> </p> + +<p>It's important to understand that the New Member process is part of +Debian's Quality Assurance efforts. Finding developers with enough free time +for their Debian tasks is complicated so checking that applicants are able to +sustain their work, and do it well, is important. Hence the requirement that +prospective developers have been actively involved in Debian for some time +already. </p> -<p> -To ease the process, it is important to already be familiar with Debian, -so we require that prospective developers have already contributed – in -the form of translations, documentation, sending patches or package -maintenance. -<br /> -Non-Developers can maintain one or more packages for Debian through -a <a href="#Sponsor">sponsor</a>. As sponsors check the packages they -want to upload, common problems are easily noticed and can be corrected -before ending up in the real archive. The sponsoring process also helps -to understand Debian's procedures and is a kind of mentoring program. +<p href="#developer-priveleges">Every Debian Developer: +<ul> + <li>is associated with Debian.</li> + <li>is allowed to vote about issues regarding the whole project.</li> + <li>can log in on most systems that keep Debian running.</li> + <li>has upload permissions for <em>all</em> packages.</li> + <li>has access to the debian-private mailing list</li> +</ul> </p> +<p>In other words becoming a Debian Developer grants you several important +privileges regarding infrastructure the project heavily depends on. Obviously +this requires a great deal of trust for and commitment by the applicant.</p> + +<p>Consequently the whole NM process is very strict and thorough. This is not +meant to discourage people interested in becoming a registered developer, +but it does explain why the New Member process takes so much time.</p> + <p>Please read the <a href="#Glossary">glossary definitions</a> before reading the rest of the pages.
Attachment:
pgpCgV9W09FqM.pgp
Description: PGP signature