bzr 2.3b2: since you asked....

[David Muir]

der Mouse wrote:
> [Moderator: this may not be appropriate for the whole list; feel free
> to forward it to some other set of recipients instead if you think it
> appropriate.]
>
> Today, I fetched bzr 2.3b2.  The README ends with
>
> | Our mission is to make a version control tool that developers LOVE to use
> | and that casual contributors feel confident with. Please let us know how
> | we're going.
>
> I don't normally write mail like this; it's too close to yelling "YOU
> SUCK!" - hardly constructive.  But, you asked - and, if you never hear
> that these are problems for anyone, there's no chance they'll change.
> (Not that it's all that large a chance as it is, but at least it's
> nonzero.)
>
> Here are reasons/ways you have failed in your mission with respect to
> me.  I'm sure there are plenty of people for whom the issues I mention
> are not problematic, and there probably are points on which you think
> the problem is with me, not with bzr (or you).  That's fine; I don't
> really expect to change your mind about any of these.  But, since you
> explicitly asked, I figured the least I could do is answer.
>
> - Your choice of language counts heavily avainst you.  Having to
>   bludgeon a large (ca. 60 megs) new language package into building is
>   a substantial barrier, especially when it's one which has drunk the
>   ./configure koolaid (see
>   ftp.rodents-montreal.org:/mouse/blah/2009-11-20-1.html, also
>   available at
>   http://ftp.rodents-montreal.org/mouse/blah/2009-11-20-1.html in case
>   you prefer dumbed-down interfaces, for my attitude towards configure
>   scripts).
>   
You might want to cite examples where the use of a configure shell 
script was the source of the problem rather than bugs in the script itself.

As for the argument about hacked distros, configure scripts would 
probably be the least of your worries.

> - Your apparent belief that it is suitable to provide only a Web
>   interface for bug reporting counts against you.  (I find it telling
>   that on http://doc.bazaar.canonical.com/latest/en/user-guide/ the
>   section on "Integrating Bazaar into your environment" appears to
>   assume that "[my] environment" means something Web, which could
>   hardly be more false.)
>   

More of an issue with a poorly titled section, as it's more related to 
integrating bazaar with bug tracking software (which is typically 
web-based).

I remember Ben Finney asking to be able to submit bug reports via email. 
He can probably fill you in on that.

> - Your choice of license counts against you.  I find the GPL rather
>   deeply hypocritical ("we're going to make this free by restricting
>   what you can do with it" - say what?), and find political polemics
>   completely inappropriate in a copyright license.
>   

Sounds a bit like the self-refuting argument of "nobody has the right to 
tell me what to do". Copyright licenses are political by definition.
Unless you're wanting to make a derivative work, or bundle it with 
something that isn't GPL compatible, it's not really an issue, and it 
doesn't sound like you're planning to do either.

> - As a comparatively minor point, I'm having trouble figuring out how
>   bzr repositories can be named.  A colleague (see below) gave me a
>   pseudo-URL of the form bzr+ssh://host/path/, but I have had no
>   success finding any indication what alternatives are accepted.
>   bzr(1) does not seem to have any documentation on this, and the only
>   SEE ALSO it has is a pointer to a Web page (bringing me back to your
>   apparent belief that Web pages are a suitable interface for anyone).
>   Even looking at the Web page does not help; perhaps I just haven't
>   found the right sequence of apparently-unrelated links to follow, or
>   perhaps it's not accessible without javascript or some such, or maybe
>   it's my inexpertise with the Web, but I've been unable to find such
>   documentation there either.
>   
see `bzr help topics` for an overview.
I believe what you're looking for might be:
bzr help urlspec


Cheers,
David