[Python-modules-team] Bug#948698: Help needed?

[Carsten Schoenert]

Hi Sandro, hi Henning!

Am 19.04.21 um 00:10 schrieb Henning Sprang:

> I thought just about a bit of technical work but if this is helpful, I
> can try. I have to check the documentation
> (https://wiki.debian.org/DebianMaintainer
> <https://wiki.debian.org/DebianMaintainer> right?) to see if I can
> fulfil the requirements for taking that role.

Step up as a package maintainer requires mostly two things, firstly a
good knowledge about the upstream project and secondly also knowledge
about the mostly technical packaging things within Debian. There are of
course some social things and requirements in Debian and by this in
packaging of upstream software.

The first part I'm sure you know enough to make decisions and judgments
about upstream versions.

But also on the technical packaging side you are not on the starting
line. The Python team in Debian has one of the best documented workflow
rules for the team which did help me in the past as I needed to package
some Python packages.

https://wiki.debian.org/Python/LibraryStyleGuide

> I have been involved with debian since a while but never has maintainer
> responsibilities and wasnt very active in recent years, but finding
> someone for the advocacy should be doable.

I can sponsor packages and preparation from you if the DPMT is o.k. with
this. In case you want to do the next step I'd also guide you through
the required NM process to become DM.

> Do you suggest anything specific i should do as a next step that i might
> not read in the above document?

Reading the mentioned Wiki site is always a good thing.
The main thing is to know and understand why a specific package is build
exact that way it is and by this to see what is potentially needed to
improve the packaging. In case something isn't fully clear the ML should
help to find the correct answers.
But shouldn't be that hard as you don't need to start from scratch and
you can use the existing git tree to see what happen in the past.

> I see also there is a newer version of the package on salsa already, not
> up to date with upstream, but more current:
> https://salsa.debian.org/python-team/packages/flask-sqlalchemy
> <https://salsa.debian.org/python-team/packages/flask-sqlalchemy>
> That’s probably what has been mentioned in the earlier conversations
> about this bug.
> But it seems not to have made it to the archive... 

Obviously. ;)
As Sandro already has mentioned we are in the hard freeze currently. So
I'd suggest to prepare a new version, this can be the existing version
in the git tree, for uploading into experimental so potentially needed
fixed versions for bullseye can still be uploaded to unstable.

Once bullseye is out of the door the usual upload of recent versions
into unstable can be done and the later migrated version can be go too
into backports if this is possible without complex adaptions on other
needed packages.

In all I can only suggest to try out to become a package maintainer for
this package in question. Shouldn't be a job with a lot of time consumption.

-- 
Regards
Carsten