[lubuntu-devel] [lubuntu-users] consistent QA help really needed

[James Freer]

On 10/03/2018, Walter Lapchynski <wxl at ubuntu.com> wrote:
> Howdy folks,
>
> Lubuntu really needs you right now.
>
> Lubuntu has, as long as I've been involved with it, always been involved
> in every single milestone release, including the alphas. We have been
> adamant about this, even when other flavours don't. This goes quite
> against the current opinion among the Ubuntu Release Team to get rid of
> milestones altogether.
>
> With that said, I'm sure you can imagine what a shocking occurance it
> was to find that we did not have sufficient testing to release Beta 1
> this week.
>
> I admit that there were some extenuating circumstances, including some
> really annoying new bugs affecting us alone (including [one][1] that
> fundamentally cripples the installation process at an early stage), but
> this also shines the light on the fact that we really are in need of
> help.
>
> Lubuntu has always been a small team. That's never really changed.
> Circumstances in the lives of core team members have resulted in a
> little less activity on their part. In general, this wouldn't be too
> much of an issue. We've weathered similar storms, but we need people to
> finish this cycle successfully given the aforementioned extenuating
> circumstances.
>
> That said, I have a humble request: maybe just an hour of your time a
> week?
>
> I recognize that some activities require a degree of skill that many
> people don't have, but even the most casual user can make a significant
> difference in QA.
>
> Testing, as it affects us mostly, involves following a set of predefined
> steps towards installing a system. If you don't have spare hardware,
> this can be done on a virtual machine (this is easier than it might
> sound). This can be done daily to keep track of overall quality. Look
> for bugs that have already been reported. Even just confirming a bug
> report can make a huge difference, let alone adding more information.
> Filing a new bug is also huge. Marking a testcase (that's what we call
> one set of install steps) as succesful or unsuccesful can be equally
> valid.
>
> Similarly, looking through existing bugs and confirming them can be
> really useful. Not to mention even dealing with older bugs that don't
> affect the development cycle. Even invalidating one of these older ones
> can cut down on the overall workload.
>
> I guess what I'm saying is that you don't need to be a developer. You
> don't need to make a job out of contributing to Lubuntu. Just a little
> bit of your time would make a difference.
>
> What do you all think? If that's not convincing enough, what hurdles do
> you face that perhaps the team could help with? Are you interested but
> don't know what we're talking about? We will happily provide free
> training.
>
> Your thoughts on these matters would be most appreciated and our
> gratitude for your help will be abundant.
>
> Thanks in advance,
>
> Walter

I did offer to do testing with Xubuntu a few years ago now, but then
they had loads of volunteers so I didn't in the end. I have only
recently looked at Lubuntu and will do my main installation with this
April release. I do have a spare machine (actually two) so I can do
whatever without touching my main machine.

james