[Newbie] Trying to solve bug #484855 as a test case

[Alejandro Exojo]

El Sábado, 7 de Junio de 2008, Lisandro Damián Nicanor Pérez Meyer escribió:
> <newbie warning>
>
> Let's supose I want to fix a bug. I'll take #484855 [0] as an example, as I
> filled it myself (I am _not_ saying I will fix it, that would be awesome,
> but what I want is to start learning the steps to become useful round here
> :-) )
>
> I do not know the steps neede to do this, but I imagine something like:
>
> * Download the src package
> * As this is a depend bug, I need to change the ¿control? [1] file of the
> package to add the correct depends.

Yes, the Depends field is in the debian/control file. If I recall correctly, 
some packages create this file at build-time, so you have to modify 
control.in, or whatever file is used to create the control file.

Note that I don't know if this dependency is really needed, and I don't know 
if the problem you reported is indeed a feature. :-)

> * Re make the package and send it to a sponsor (I am not a DD as you may
> all have already guessed :-) )
> * Iterate on the sponsor's reply

Not in this case. If you were the package maintainer, you must fix your 
package, of course. That implies fixing, building, and uploading it. If you 
are not a Debian Developer, you need a DD who can upload it for you, but the 
rest of the work is yours.

In this case, the maintainer for the package is who is listed on Uploaders and 
Maintainer. That means that you can fix it, and build it too, but only to 
test the fix. What you really have to do, is send the patch to the bug you 
reported (or this list, whatever is preferred by the KDE team). The 
maintainers will comment on your patch, and if it's OK, they will apply it, 
and build and upload the new package.

> * Have the bug fixed, and some fun too :-)

Yes, but no. ;-)

Every time you do a new upload, you have to change the debian/changelog file. 
Inside there will be a line saying "Closes: #484855". When the package is 
accepted in the archive, the bug will be automatically closed in the BTS.

> Comments, ideas, RTFMs with proper urls welcomed :-D
>
> [0] http://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=484855
> [1] I know very little about packaging, but I can ask Marga Manterola for
> some howtos and/or doc. Of course, if you can and will, you can provide me
> with that too.

The New Maintainers Guide is a very good manual that you should definitely  
read a couple of times till you master it.

If you have friendship with Marga or with other DD, look for a small program 
which is not in Debian (or which is not maintained) and package it. Then ask 
her if she can be your sponsor. If don't, look for another developer in 
debian-mentors, or the Debian+KDE lists.

Another pretty good idea is subscribe to debian-mentors, since you can learn a 
lot from the problems of other people.

And if you really want to help KDE and Debian, I'm pretty sure there will be 
dozens (if not hundreds) of bugs that need no changes in the source code, 
just the intervention of a human being to check that the bug is not really a 
bug, is duplicated, is already fixed, is not reproducible, needs more info, 
etc.

Debian's bug tracking system is daunting at first, but in the mid-term, is way 
easier to work with, because you just need to send emails with commands, and 
is a lot faster than using bugzilla's web interface. :-(

Buena suerte y ánimo. ;-)

-- 
Alex (a.k.a. suy) - GPG ID 0x0B8B0BC2
http://barnacity.net/ - Jabber ID: suy at bulmalug.net