Hello everyone, I've written an email to Cyril Bouthors that started as,
"In your 4.0.0-3 upload of gluplot, you've said in the changelog * This upload is aimed to take over the package and fix the easiest bugs first. I'll upload another version shortly that will take care of the oh-so-many opened bugs that look almost all fixed upstream and/or obsolete to me. One of them is 5 years and 160 days old! "Release early, release often". " The rest of the email and his response follows, Cyril Bouthors wrote: > On 3 Apr 2006, Adam Majer wrote: > > >> But the correct method of closing bugs is to send a message to >> [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the explanation of the fix and not in >> the changelog. Well, at least not in the way you seem to intend. The >> bugs closed in changelogs are suppose to be bugs closed due to the >> changes from the previous version to the current version. If you only >> mean to do, >> >> * Close bugs that were fixed VERY long time ago (closes: >> #123,#234,#345,#456,#567,#678,#789,....) >> >> then I don't think that is appropriate use of the changelog. >> > > Closing bugs through the changelog is an officially supported method > and most DDs close bugs that way. Submitters receive a detailed > notification by email as soon as the package is uploaded. > > I have no special mean to close bugs without informing the submitters > with a clear and detailed explanation as I always did with all my > packages. > My question is, is it now appropriate to use the changelog as a crutch to close bugs that have nothing to do with the upload? I was always under impression that *old* bugs should be closed by sending an email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] saying that you are closing it because it was fixed some time ago, etc.. etc.. The policy [1] states, "If this upload resolves bugs recorded in the Bug Tracking System (BTS), they may be automatically closed on the inclusion of this package into the Debian archive by including the string: closes: Bug#nnnnn in the change details." Therefore, by my reading of the policy the changelog is not an appropriate method of closing *old* bugs because they were not resolved by the upload. They were resolved some time ago and should be closed by a mail to the BTS. - Adam [1] http://www.debian.org/doc/debian-policy/ch-source.html#s-dpkgchangelog -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]