Re: [Fedora-packaging] [Guidelines change] Changes to the packaging guidelines

[Stephen Gallagher]

On Wed, 2015-07-08 at 20:13 -0500, Jason L Tibbitts III wrote:
>  Here are the recent changes to the packaging guidelines.  Note that
>  there is also a set of Python guideline changes pending which I will
>  send in a separate announcement.
>  
>  -----
>  
>  Guidelines for making use of weak dependencies (Recommends:, 
>  Suggests:,
>  etc.) have been added.
>  
>   *https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Packaging:WeakDependencies
>   *https://fedorahosted.org/fpc/ticket/531 
>   
Is there any case to allow Supplements: in the Fedora Collection? It
seems to me like this could be problematic. (e.g. I write a plugin for
a popular engine and package it, then add Supplements: so that it gets
pulled in by default whenever that engine is installed. My plugin then
causes things to crash.) I think it is reasonable for us to forbid
Supplements: except with FPC exemption. It should be up to the owner of
the primary package to decide to add Recommends: instead.

[Guidelines change] Changes to the packaging guidelines

[Vít Ondruch]

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA256

Dne 9.7.2015 v 17:22 Stephen Gallagher napsal(a):
>  On Wed, 2015-07-08 at 20:13 -0500, Jason L Tibbitts III wrote:
> > Here are the recent changes to the packaging guidelines.  Note that
> > there is also a set of Python guideline changes pending which I will
> > send in a separate announcement.
> >
> > -----
> >
> > Guidelines for making use of weak dependencies (Recommends:,
> > Suggests:,
> > etc.) have been added.
> >
> >  *https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Packaging:WeakDependencies
> >  *https://fedorahosted.org/fpc/ticket/531
> >
>
>  Is there any case to allow Supplements: in the Fedora Collection? It
>  seems to me like this could be problematic. (e.g. I write a plugin for
>  a popular engine and package it, then add Supplements: so that it gets
>  pulled in by default whenever that engine is installed. My plugin then
>  causes things to crash.) I think it is reasonable for us to forbid
>  Supplements: except with FPC exemption. It should be up to the owner of
>  the primary package to decide to add Recommends: instead. 
So we don't trust Fedora contributors anymore? Will we now replace every
"use your best judgment" clause in guidelines by "Ask FPC for
approval"?

And TBH, I can't see somebody would use Supplements in Fedora, since I,
as a maintainer of some "popular engine", will probably want to have
Require or Recommends on such important plugin and I'll be probably one
of the first people who would notice such breakage.

Really, we should not write arbitrary guidelines without real life
examples and moreover we should not prohibit things nobody would ever
use anyway. The guidelines are complex enough already.


Vít
> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
> Version: GnuPG v2
>
> iQIcBAEBCAAGBQJVn4D+AAoJEAzgnueZF7h8fTYP/0yq49wz7W4zeJMcxXcsOGYP
> w6SYfcfwVuHjJlag+W+n4Jc1uhAFxHzIt3IfazTfeU6PT6eXPThABo5I1pHSi0Xv
> CIw29nc7uFDJffAkXK9SBdflP5IuA0STSVGyZCcN4hR4juBpq2ID1DJGQybIjekt
> T2k/Est+jKFebmZ5a6caAJxVkV66vsY6mQLDC+V1qsxMOGj7FQRbKQh+YNkt++Ns
> VxWIE6Xvm9sz7uF4tCfyUoYcNzAc44Ka4MhUx2y8Znn5514sKzxQI9LhiJXzkW/b
> lkeN+zvzBILaT6GdN/xtF9pYYRh68AhJeGv4WQz/138lG58IneqOe1CVjXiqZcOk
> SZ1MC3cFTMpSx7Ch4D2cuX1mntw0gIdKiJjKNNTpH0CpjHnMHTvnrH4QhlGswN/n
> ydLCXbudlufirZDLUzJLN39wkVkwGB5UxV3l5jUTQPW+Za6UOQ/LBVTVfLNiXUZ4
> Y0tfi3sfzeg5E4gnn5ibvInjZy88NMEyA1MGbnZdJ8XYt+VABu+ZG/hlAF87rtg0
> aevOm0G0XQf+T+h39TI5w0LbeJ1bmO28Sp2/+IlAey4R8u1PG10QyplZlTgCQhgn
> bfN9HFf6PaQT51NpkknJZeMuUmyCXuRXyHlNdva7p2WOlUV1w4yznSorbvuCcseo
> OVCEd97rMgKkM+FD4AbZ
> =wBCh
> -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

[Guidelines change] Changes to the packaging guidelines

[Jason L Tibbitts III]

> >>>> "VO" == Vít Ondruch
> <vondruch(a)redhat.com&gt; writes: 
VO> So we don't trust Fedora contributors anymore? Will we now replace
VO> every "use your best judgment" clause in guidelines by "Ask FPC for
VO> approval"?

In general I prefer to start with "use your judgment" and move on to
more formality only if there are issues.  Only in the case where getting
things wrong would cause big problems would I want to start with
something as strict as going to FPC for approval.

I see potential issues with Supplements: as more of a social issue
anyway.  I don't even think FPC would be well-placed to evaluate many of
the situations where it would occur.

 - J<