The disgrace of (the) Kompozer (package maintainer)

[Patrick Goetz]

We are currently using Jaunty 9.04 (64 and 32-bit) on our production 
desktop systems.  A few weeks ago a user asked me for a recommendation 
for an easy to use html editor, and I suggested KompoZer.  (Suggestions? 
  I think I've tried most of them and found them lacking; the original 
Netscape Composer, now found in SeaMonkey still seems to be the best for 
fast, simple editing of static HTML pages by naive users.)

The version of KompoZer in 9.04 universe is 0.7.10.  The user came back 
a few days later complaining about bugs.  I didn't believe him until I 
tried it myself.  Sure enough, just hovering the mouse over certain menu 
items (e.g. file -> recent pages or formatting -> fonts) make the 
program crash every time -- the editing window simply disappears.  Feel 
free to try it yourself.

It took exactly 15 seconds to confirm that this is a known bug (in 
Intrepid!) and another 5 seconds to find out what it was.  Tracking down 
the bug involves the following complicated steps: google for the work 
"kompozer" and then click on the first link which appears, the kompozer 
project home page, where one finds the following text right in the 
middle of the main page:

"Linux users: KompoZer 0.7.10 is not compatible with GTK 2.14 and 
higher, hence the crashes. Please have a look at KompoZer 0.8 alpha."

Now, is it finally appropriate for me to say WTF?  Is the package 
maintainer for this package in a coma?  It shouldn't take more than one 
use of the program to realize that there is a problem:  if the mouse 
pointer comes in contact with the test "recent pages" the program 
crashes.  Changing the font, a frequently invoked action, is completely 
impossible.

Since we all care about linux/Ubuntu on this list, I presume that I 
don't have to say that we simply can't afford to continue to have these 
kinds of embarrassing basic quality control issues.  If a package isn't 
really being maintained, then it shouldn't appear in any of the main 
repositories.  What's the definition of "really being maintained"?  For 
starters, trying to run the program at least one time with the new 
distribution before publishing.