MOTU hopefull questions

[Loïc Martin]

Hello,

I've been trying packaging a few times, with success for some packages, 
failures for other ones. I committed one before Edgy's release, but 
after UVF, so it didn't work.

However, there's still things I still don't know even after reading the 
docs (packaging and submitting).


1. How do syncs with Debian occurs? Is it just at the beginning of a 
release cycle? Does this happens automatically, or must each package be 
synced manually, and who can do so?

For example, wacom-tools hasn't been synced with Debian for a while, 
even though a few bugs would be solved by a new version.

How does one makes sure a package will be synced for Feisty+1 (I know 
bug reports doesn't do it)? I don't mind doing the job, but I don't know 
what to do for that. If a doc exists, I'll be happy to learn about it.

If the package is in universe, can MOTU sync packages, and how?


2. I was under the impression that syncs keeps occurring till UVF. 
However, some packages were updated in Debian before UVF (ex. package 
qgo 1.5.3 on 05/01/07) but weren't synced : what could I do to address 
this problem in the future (I didn't try packaging qgo this time because 
I know the Debian packager is updating its packages really fast, and I 
thought it would be ok)?


3. What is the best time to submit a package in universe?


4. How does one submit a higher version of a package that hasn't been 
updated in Debian (especially when it appears the Debian maintainer has 
disappeared)?


5. Is it possible to submit in universe a higher version (or a patched 
version) of a core package (thinking about wacom-tools for example) when 
that package hasn't been updated for a while? (bug reports only work up 
to a certain extent).