Call for volunteers - improved installation experience on OS X, Windows, Linux/Unix

Erik Bågfors zindar at gmail.com
Thu Dec 6 16:20:58 GMT 2007


Fun to see this discussion. I actually started the other day to create
a package installer for Mac.

I really would love if we would have an installer that included bzr,
bzr-svn, bzr-tools and some other nice plugins.  This is what I
started to do, but I have no objection for someone else to do it. I
can't promise that I'll get around to it for 1.0.  But I would LOOOVE
to see a one click installer that installs all of it.

/Erik

On Dec 6, 2007 2:37 PM, Ian Clatworthy <ian.clatworthy at internode.on.net> wrote:
> With 1.0 just around the corner, we want to ensure that anyone who wants
> to try out Bazaar can do so with the absolute minimum of pain. We have
> lots of amazing technology in the Bazaar world but that means little if
> users can't easily get to it. The core product is one thing but being
> able to install commonly used plugins is *equally* important.
>
> This email is a bit long, sorry. Headings have been added in case you
> wish to skip bits of limited interest to you.
>
> What pieces need to be bundled?
> -------------------------------
>
> Here are the pieces I think we ought to be thinking about in terms of a
> "batteries included" VCS package:
>
> * core product
> * core productivity plugins
> * easy migration from Subversion
> * web server to browse branches
> * GUI tool
> * OS-specific shell integration.
>
> How should we bundle those?
> ---------------------------
>
> I'm not suggesting we want a single installer for all of that on each OS
> (for 1.0 at least). However, I would like to see us explicit make an
> effort to select and package the above pieces into installers for
> Windows and OS X. The important ingredient to me is dependency
> management rather than installer count. For example, it's ok to have
> several installers but the one including bzr-gtk needs to bundle the
> right py-gtk library for example, the one bundling bzr-svn needs to
> bundle the right pieces for it, etc.
>
> Call for volunteers
> -------------------
>
> Thanks to the work of Olexandr and Adam, we have maintained Windows
> installers and a MacPort already. Earlier today, I put my thoughts on
> how we could do better on OS X here:
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bzr/+bug/174275. In a nutshell, I'd love to
> see MacPorts of numerous plugins and a user-friendly installer.
> Szilvester has offered to do an installer. Hooray! Can anyone else help
> either in the packaging or the testing thereof?
>
> Likewise, we're off to a good start already in the Windows world thanks
> to the amazing Olexandr. He's also on the right track IMO. For example,
> he was asking a few days ago about how important a bzr-svn Windows
> installer was. I think the answer is "very", particularly if that's our
> preferred way of getting svn repositories converted to Bazaar. See below
> re that.
>
> The Linux/Unix world needs attention as well w.r.t. packaging. Once
> again, deb/rpm/Freshport packages for the core is one thing: plugins
> with messy dependencies need packaging love as well and a "meta" package
> covering "batteries included" has value. Re-branding baz packages to
> remove confusion is necessary for the MacPort. Perhaps it is elsewhere
> as well?
>
> The new user plug-in selection debate
> -------------------------------------
>
> Beyond my above call for more/better installers/packaging, I'd like to
> have a debate about which plug-ins we ought to be packaging/recommending
> (out of the many, many plugins) to brand new, shiny users.
>
> Help!!!! Which migration tool from Subversion should new users start
> with? We currently give them two branches of svn2bzr to choose from as
> well as bzr-svn. That's *too many options* to begin with! Right now,
> which is the best, most reliable option? Users want to switch from
> Subversion to Bazaar. Let's make it as easy to do that as we can so
> users can try out Bazaar on their branches. (Having tried it and fallen
> in love, we might recommend one of the other choices which has different
> risks/rewards. That's ok IMHO.)
>
> *Which* GUI tool is recommended for new users on different platforms?
> They can always install another one later but which one should they
> start with to get the best initial experience? I'm yet to evaluate them
> in depth on any OS so I can't say. I'm guessing QBzr is looking a good
> starting point on Windows, bzr-gtk on Linux, and not-a-clue on OS X?
>
> Which web app would we bundle if we had to pick one? webserve?
> loggerhead? Which is easiest to install and maintain for a user on their
> desktop? To put some context around this question, Git comes bundled
> with GitWeb. I've also heard of some users selecting Mercurial primarily
> because hgweb was much loved over alternatives for other tools. It's
> cool we offer as much choice as we do. But let's get our users moving
> and productive by picking one for them initially.
>
> What core plugins should we be bundling? bzrtools, difftools and
> extmerge stand out to me. Is rebase wanted enough to be bundled as well?
> Others? I'm sure there are. As a rule, if a plugin is useful enough to
> be talked about in some depth in the User Guide, then it ought to be
> considered for bundling. (BTW, the User Guide ought to cover the bundled
> plugins much more than it does. It's not complete yet, though close to
> acceptable now for 1.0 IMHO.)
>
> Summary
> -------
>
> If anyone is looking for a way to contribute, improving packaging and
> testing it for 1.0 has a high value-to-effort ratio. Another way to help
> is to simply voice your opinions given what you've learnt using Bazaar
> on your platform? What plugins should we recommend to new users to make
> them productive quickly?
>
> 1.0 is fast approaching. One of the positives out of taking that leap of
> faith is that it tends to focus attention on reducing the barriers to
> entry: installation, documentation, etc. I hope the above email triggers
> some useful discussion on these fronts. And action!
>
> Ian C.
>
>



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