RFC: -server packages universe demotions and main promotions

[James Troup]

Matt Zimmerman <mdz at ubuntu.com> writes:

> On Fri, Dec 04, 2009 at 01:33:42PM -0500, Mathias Gug wrote:
>> == Proposed main promotion ==
>> 
>>  # oidentd
>
> According to Chuck's analysis in
> https://blueprints.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+spec/server-lucid-canonical-application-support
> this is dead upstream, and so would be unsuitable for main.

So I have a couple of concerns with this conclusion:

 a) there's plenty of other software in main that's either just as
    'dead' (e.g. the last upstream release of zlib was also 2006 (same
    as oidentd) and mawk in *1996*) or has had longer periods of
    non-activity (e.g. ed was unmaintained upstream from 1994 to 2006)

 b) if a program is mostly feature complete, free of any critical or
    important bugs and demonstrably works for users, why is there a
    strict requirement for an active upstream doing releases?

That said, my primary concern was that we have an identd in main; I
don't much care that it's oidentd; if there's a better alternative I'd
be happy with (and to migrate to) that.

>>  # nginx:
>>     - 6.21 percent market share according to Netcraft
>
> I don't see a need for more than apache in main FWIW.

FWIW, I'm also very unkeen on seeing nginx in main but mostly for the
reasons Marc and Kees described.

-- 
James