Getting new packages into Ubuntu

[Matthew Paul Thomas]

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Stefano Rivera wrote on 10/10/11 20:24:
> 
> Hi Sebastien (2011.10.10_20:34:48_+0200) ...
>>> * No obvious approaches to handling security issues or bug 
>>> reports yet.
>> 
>> How does android or app stores deal with those?


As well as linking to the developer's Web site, which Ubuntu Software
Center already does, they sometimes have another link specifically for
reporting problems. We'd like to add that too.
<https://wiki.ubuntu.com/SoftwareCenter#isv-support>

> ... When you download something from the software centre, the 
> origin isn't obvious. Currently, I think about the only obvious 
> feedback mechanism is the reviews in Software Center (are those 
> visible on the web anywhere?). By doing this, we are also aligning 
> Ubuntu with these apps, to some degree. People find the quality of 
> the apps in smartphones application stores to be a discriminator 
> between smartphone platforms. I think that'll easily carry over to 
> Ubuntu, and people will measure Ubuntu by the quality of the app 
> store.
> 
> We don't want as little responsibility as possible. We want to 
> create the best experience for our users and ourselves.


That isn't a one-dimensional landscape, though. More oversight also
means more time and effort to publish an application, which means
fewer applications, which means a worse experience. (Or,
alternatively, a good experience for fewer people.)

The past 18 years of Debian and Ubuntu have shown that the model of
"we package all your stuff, and people upgrade their OS to get it" is
not a peak on that landscape. Or at least, not one high enough to be
competitive.

>> We shouldn't aim at getting libraries in extras, the libraries 
>> should be part of the platform an in the archive itself then.
> 
> I'm talking about bundled libraries, not library packages.
> There'll be ARB apps that need libraries that aren't in Ubuntu.
> (And probably ARB apps that want different library versions to what
> we ship in Ubuntu).
> 
> ...


Ubuntu developers announce, months in advance, what kernel and
toolchain versions will be used in the next release. Minimizing the
library problem may involve doing something similar for libraries (or
at least library API versions). So if you want your application
published for that Ubuntu version, you can write to that version's APIs.

- -- 
mpt
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