Re: [gentoo-dev] Portage, SLOT, functionality, documentation, ChangeLog

[Grant Goodyear]

> Portage has an abhorrent lack of documentation, I'd like to see that
> changed. Possibly
> (especially) before a 1.4 release.

I don't think there's a snowball's chance in Death Valley of that
happening, just due to time restrictions.  It's certainly true, though,
that we do need to consolidate and improve the portage docs.

> Also, and I can't stress this enough, a ChangeLog is *required*. When
> key functionality
> is introduced, updated, removed, or significantly altered, it is
> imperative that users
> and developers alike can be easily appraised of it in a common location.

You'll find that the ChangeLog gets installed in
/usr/share/doc/portage-x.y.z.  Of course, it might be nice to know
what's changed before you upgrade.  The ChangeLog in sys-apps/portage
incorrectly points people to viewcvs on cvs.g.o, although that's simple
enough to fix.  Slightly more difficult is the fact that gentoo-src is
no longer linked to viewcvs.  Since portage and rc scripts are developed
there, having web access is really handy.  Can we fix that?  (Numerous
cheers, by the way, for the prompt return of viewcvs.  Thanks!!!)

> A roadmap would also help a lot of people rest easy at night. Whether it
> is the case or
> not, it seems as if major changes take place in Portage on a whim. If
> they are planned,
> the general userbase has no foreknowledge of said plans and these
> changes come as
> a complete surprise when finally marked stable in the tree (if people
> even know they
> exist, due to the aforementioned lack of documentation).

*Grin*  The roadmap _used_ to be a "TODO" block in portage.py.  Having a
somewhat more formal roadmap would be a nice idea, and I don't know if
one exists or not, although I'd be rather surprised if one didn't.

Best,
g2boojum
-- 
Grant Goodyear <g2boojum@g.o>