Save Gentoo Thread

g0rg0n · Tux's lil' helper Joined: 18 Feb 2006 Posts: 83

last GWN was issued on 7th of May, 2007

this made me think that the whole Gentoo project is falling apart a little. =/
_________________
nicewarm.coffee

G2k · l33t Joined: 06 Mar 2004 Posts: 672 Location: Rome, Italy

96140 · Retired Dev Joined: 23 Jan 2005 Posts: 1324

steveL · Posted: Wed Jun 13, 2007 8:50 am Post subject: Re: hmmm

G2k · l33t Joined: 06 Mar 2004 Posts: 672 Location: Rome, Italy

Yeah ok maybe I'm being a bit harsh but I really don't want this project to die :-(

Other distros just aren't making it for me
_________________
Animula vagula blandula,
Hospes comesque corporis,
Quae nunc abibis in loca
Pallidula rigida nudula,
Nec ut soles dabis iocos...
- Imp. Caesar Hadrianus

steveb · Advocate Joined: 18 Sep 2002 Posts: 4564

papal_authority · Veteran Joined: 31 Mar 2004 Posts: 1823 Location: Canada

Genone · Posted: Thu Jun 14, 2007 2:22 am Post subject:

micr0c0sm · Posted: Thu Jun 14, 2007 5:34 am Post subject:

From a user perspective it seems like needless bureaucracy is whats holding Gentoo back right now ( lol mailing list post on banning humor ).

oh and http://www.reactivated.net/weblog/archives/2007/06/distributed-distributions/ is interesting

idea:
a) fork gentoo
b) the developers only maintain the 'core' ebuild tree - just what's needed to run the package manager
c) allow anyone to contribute to the 'community' tree
d) when a package is marked stable in the community tree it is moved to the 'contributed' tree

preferences:
a) call it gen2
b) use paludis
c) give access with a simple forum profile option (and ensure email address is public)
have the information on 'how to contribute' on the main site right after downloads and in the handbook
d) add a hook to paludis that tracks the number of successful installs vs. the number of failures, upload stats to main site, and after a high threshold is passed (90% + at least 90 successes?) auto-stable it. Failures don't count if certain cflags/ldflags are used, but successes do count even with those same cflags/ldflags.

candy:
allow people to set their own 'stable' thresholds
auto-create binpkgs for the most common compiler settings

options:
if you log onto packages.gen2.org (same account as forums.gen2.org) you can vote up/down a package and explain why. may be better than just a machine made hook. may be worse.

If I wasn't
a) poor
b) retarded
c) busy
I would have already set all this up. At least I have an IRC channel (#gen2). Feel free to bash my head in there for dumb ideas.

btw, if anyone can hack up a script to register the domain i will pay for it (even though i am a poor college student). do not email them expressing interest otherwise they will definately re-register (we have a slim chance they wont or maybe a bot will be slow....).
Domain Name:GEN2.ORG
Created On:01-Aug-2006 04:35:13 UTC
Last Updated On:31-Mar-2007 03:53:46 UTC
Expiration Date:01-Aug-2007 04:35:13 UTC

Carlo · Developer Joined: 12 Aug 2002 Posts: 3356

legine · Guru Joined: 27 May 2004 Posts: 555 Location: Germany

As long as there are updates at a sync in a week, gentoo is going along.

Ubuntu is a bad example. We do not have a sponsor that fires millions of Dollars into the Project. :twisted:

Look at debian. They were slow too. Had no releasetimes for general updates etc.etc. And they were always one leading community in their own way in Linuxsociety.

So what the devs manages is outstanding from my point of view.

And we had and have all the outstanding things that other distros have.

We have a lot Ideas threads. Discussion of whats going on. And Idea lists.
We do have a great and competent Wikki.
We do have a additional Document view.
We do have community represants that collect Ideas clearing developerviews were developers cant come and explain things.
We were fine with on package system for a long long time. while other Distros are offering 3 to 4 package manglers. which tells us that portage is a great tool that worked for all for a long long time. Which is to me an outstanding performance.
And of course we do have the best mascot ever!

In hole I think as far as I see a working community. Which tries things out. (the Webside change was great thing to try. I enjoyed the choice. But I was happy when nothing happend

) I think most people complained that the old theme was not to be at choice.

We (someone) had an Idea to improve forum search. I lost somehow contact to that little project so I think it failed too. But hey. It is not important if things go great. It is important we do have people that try and care to make this place a living place.

I think Gentoo is doing fine.

_________________
quote from Spaceballs:
Dark Helmet:[...] we were told to comb the desert, so we're combing it! [puts down bullhorn] Find anything yet?!
Soldier: Nothing yet, sir.

Syntaxis · Guru Joined: 28 Apr 2002 Posts: 511 Location: London, UK

legine · Guru Joined: 27 May 2004 Posts: 555 Location: Germany

[quote=Syntaxis]Alas, I think you'll find that's not the case...[/quote]

The wikki is as competent as the forums are. I do not see them as a second (in)offical documentation. Thats rubbish. There you are right.
But the Wikki is a great addition to the forums (and the documentation). You can pull vital Information from the Forums into the Wikki and generate fast living Documentation or very focused Documentation. I.e. focused Docs on are special Laptop series. Or on inoffical Software. (World of Warcraft howto on the wikki had some fame throughout Linux world. :wink:

) I dont think those are worth an offical Documentation because the offical working power would be soaked away from important documentation.

And differenent to ubuntu we have a clear seperation on maintained offical Documentation and fast written extract of knowledge. Which gives us transparancy over quality. And who knows? maybe one started documentating stuff within the wikki could be recruited to the documentation project.

You see from my point of view the aim of the wikki is totally different as the Documentation Project and that makes it the perfect addition to the tools the comunity can use to make the gentoo Distro to what it is. One of the best (if not the best) Linux distros that I know!
_________________
quote from Spaceballs:
Dark Helmet:[...] we were told to comb the desert, so we're combing it! [puts down bullhorn] Find anything yet?!
Soldier: Nothing yet, sir.

NeddySeagoon · Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2007 5:01 pm Post subject:

Syntaxis · Guru Joined: 28 Apr 2002 Posts: 511 Location: London, UK

NeddySeagoon · Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2007 6:55 pm Post subject:

Syntaxis,

The wiki can be changed by anyone of any level of competance, from the well meaning but mistaken to the malicious.
Users are often referred tothe gentoo wiki but with a sensible health warning about if/when it breaks, they can keep the pieces. The wiki is uncontrolled.

Other distros can make their own risk assessments as to how "official" their wikis are to suit themselves.

Keep in mind that binary distros deprive their users of many of the choices that gentoo insists users make, so binary distros can afford a lower standard of documentation and to take more risks with it.

Oh, I have seen the damage that malicious advice does twice while I have been a gentoo user. Specifically two instances of (as root)

PaulBredbury · Watchman Joined: 14 Jul 2005 Posts: 7310

Isn't that nasty command sanely guarded against now? Not that I'm suggesting anyone try it on a system they want to keep

Edit: Oops, looks like it still needs:

AllenJB · Veteran Joined: 02 Sep 2005 Posts: 1285

NeddySeagoon · Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2007 7:33 pm Post subject:

Syntaxis · Guru Joined: 28 Apr 2002 Posts: 511 Location: London, UK