[Reproducible-builds] [GSoC 2016] : Application review

[Satyam Zode]

> Satyam Zode:
>> So this summer I intend to work on
>> 1) Improvements to diffoscope:
>> 1.1)  Allow users to ignore arbitrary differences (Addition of
>> ignore-profiles flag).
>> 1.2)  Perform fuzzy-matching across archives.
>> 1.3)  Finish parallel processing part.
>> Above points are mentioned on GSoC wiki. And also there are more
>> features mentioned in whishlist
>> (https://reproducible-builds.org/events/athens2015/diffoscope-wishlist/)
>> I will try to cover some of those too.
>
> Sounds good. Be aware that the first part will require some design work.
> Finding the right UI regarding ignores might require input from the
> community. I'd recommend to split this into two parts
> (design+experiment+survey / implementation+documentation). You probably
> will want to work on other things in parellel with the discussions.
> Could you try to come up with rough estimations on how much time all of
> the above would require?

As far as my research till now is concerned. Brief timeline looks like:
Design and Experiment:
1)  During the application screening:(March 26 - April 22)
 1.1) Acquaint myself with diffoscope and research about proposed features.
 1.2) Get hands-on experience with diffoscope.
 1.3) Set up the development environment.
 1.4) Track changes to the project roadmap in a publicly accessible document.
 1.5) Design relevant project design and discuss project design with a
community.
2) Community Bonding Period: (April 23 - May 10)
  2.1) Interact with the community and exchange information related to
project design and working of diffoscope in different conditions.
  2.2) Finalizing design and documenting same in the project design wiki.
  2.3) Learning more about Debian community.

Implementation:
Official coding period.
3) Week 1 - 2 (May 27 - June 9):
  - Work on  "Allow users to ignore arbitrary differences" part.
  - Work simultaneously on unreproducible packages.
4) Week 3 - 4 (June 10 - June 22):
  - Work on Parallel processing part.
  - Work simultaneously on unreproducible packages.

------------------------------- Mid-Term Evaluations
--------------------------------

5) Week 5 - 7 (June 23 - July 13):
   - Finish remaining work
   - Start working on fuzzy matching algorithm.
6) Week 8 - 10 (July 14 - August 3):
  - Finish fuzzy matching algorithm implementation.
  - Work on new file-format comparators.
 7) Week 11 (August 4 - August 13):
  - Write tests for implemented features and comparators.
  - keep working on unreproducible Debian packages.

Documentation:
 8)  Week 12 (August 15 - August 22): Suggested pencils down date
  - Code refactoring.
  - Finish documentation.
-----------------------------Final-Evaluations
---------------------------------------

If time permits I will try to implement more features of diffoscope
(from wishlist and as per community feedback) otherwise I will finish
those in post-GSoC'16.

I am working on project design right as soon as I get something
relevant I will reach out to you :) I will mostly discuss about my
findings on IRC.
Lunar, I hope this is fine. :)

Many thanks!
Satyam