A way out of the update trap

[Jerry Amundson]

On Fri, Dec 12, 2008 at 2:40 PM, Jeff Spaleta <jspaleta at gmail.com> wrote:
> On Fri, Dec 12, 2008 at 10:59 AM, Patrice Dumas <pertusus at free.fr> wrote:
>> I'd propose, more largely @code, @base and dependencies.
>
> I think that's too broad a target to start with and you don't have the
> QA resourses in place to support a policy that broad.
>
> If QA resources are scarce, how about we treat them as scarce and
> build narrow policies which let the existing resources get used for
> best benefit on targetted priorities. And as resources grow, we grow
> the list of priorities downward into more areas.

Yes!

> Right now. I am asking us as a project to suck it up and identify a
> top functionality priority and to live within our means as it comes to
> existing QA expectations.

Based on an informal weighted system, using scores for Technicality,
Severity, and Emotional impact, these add up fairly evenly:

*) grub (e.g. Bug 450143) - not so severe, and short to fix (for those
adept with repair disk), but it's soooo disheartening to see a system
turned to paperweight in an instant.

*) wireless - it just *has* to work, period. Oft-times, even currently
wired areas (campus, business, etc.) go wireless. Extra bonus :
connect in runlevel 3. I can *remote desktop* to my laptop upstairs
when it's running the windowing os from M$, yet I can't even ssh to it
when I boot up Fedora. Come on, it's nearly 2009 folks....

*) the stuff between grub and networking (forgive the generalization
:-) - wired networking included here as a fallback option and is,
generally, easier to implement/fix.

*) wired network - it's still important.

[unless we have the above, we don't have a simple update ability, right?]

*) [pony alert] some sort of 'update from media' feature - like an
"Install from" dvd/cd/sd which contains updates instead of base
packages... repair-disk-on-drugs... Something to help get the machine
back that's easier than going into the office, burning to cd all the
packages to fix my breakage (assuming I've figured that out beforehand
- of course I'd get it right the first time!), booting it (assuming I
can), mount the cd (assuming I can), edit yum.conf for the disk-based
updates, and apply them...??

*) Package Updating at the console (rpm and yum)

*) The desktop that, 1. Works, and 2. Looks the same as my previous
login [related example is KDE in rawhide - no desktop, but the right
click konsole terminal is there at least - even better with a wireless
net, see above :-)]

jerry

-- 
TBD.