[Gnu-arch-users] Re: Linus

[Stephen J. Turnbull]

>>>>> "Tom" == Tom Lord <address@hidden> writes:

    >> From: "Stephen J. Turnbull" <address@hidden>

    >> >>>>> "Tom" == Tom Lord <address@hidden> writes:

    Tom> But have you noticed that, even with everyone using arch, we
    Tom> also use the savannah bug tracker as a crude approximation of
    Tom> a patch tracker?

    >> Who's this "we", White Man?  That's your tool, no?  I don't
    >> recall seeing any cscvs patches in there, for example.

    Tom> What are you burbling about now?  "We" is the set of people
    Tom> using the savannah bug tracker as a crude approximation of a
    Tom> patch tracker for the gnu-arch project.  If you get around to
    Tom> submitting any changes you'll pick up on it, I would hope.

If I get around to submitting changes, I will, because you won't apply
them if I don't.  But archivist is "a separate project", so it seems
pretty likely that I'll not much care.

    Tom> cscvs is a separate project and I'm not sure why you'd
    Tom> mention it in this context -- but from what I can see, the
    Tom> cscvs project uses an unholy marriage of private mail,
    Tom> gnu-arch-users mail, and #arch irc traffic as a crude
    Tom> approximation of a patch tracker.

Exactly.  Although cscvs is an important project to many arch users,
and can benefit from and be hindered by arch changes, it's not in the
arch patch tracker.

So what it comes down to is that the savannah bug tracker is about
access to Tom.  It reflects and probably encourages centralization of
decision-making in Tom, and does not help those parts of the community
which are doing something that Tom is not directly involved in.  It
encourages Tom to focus on the bug-tracker as the source of patches
and other arch development issues, possibly tending to exclude issues
that relate to third-party projects.

Whether these are good things or not, I don't know.  But they are not
decentralizing influences as currently implemented.

    > Making Linus and even the whole gatekeeper collection faster is a
    > worthy project.  But it seems you think something is going to make it
    > possible to get Linus off the critical path.  Don't hold your breath.

    Tom> I don't have to get Linus off the critical path.  That
    Tom> happened a few years ago (quite independently of bitkeeper,
    Tom> too).

Then why does it matter if Linus drops Miles's patches on the floor?
The fact that the project could continue without Linus is irrelevant
to whether Linus is on the critical path in the current organization.


-- 
Institute of Policy and Planning Sciences     http://turnbull.sk.tsukuba.ac.jp
University of Tsukuba                    Tennodai 1-1-1 Tsukuba 305-8573 JAPAN
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