No changelog files in Maemo?
 

How can one find out what changes have been made to packages before installing new versions? E.g. a few hourse ago a new version of the fbreader package was put forward, but I don't find the slightest hint of what I can expect by upgrading, neither on the maemo web pages nor in the package itself. Debian packages usually have changelog files. Are they not required in Maemo? I really would like to see some minimal information in /usr/share/doc/..., duly optified. Or at least on the maemo package pages.:rolleyes:

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

Kindly ask the author/maintainer to provide a changelog for the package, sometimes they put it in description of the package, or in garage.

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

May point was that I don't see no standard place for such things as changelogs, hence the question whether it perhaps exists and I just haven't found it. I like it the way it is in packages.debian.org where one can look at the changelog without having to download the deb, and doesn't have to search through it, mostly without finding any further information. To me a changelog file would be the barest minimum of documentation of what a package maintainer should provide. Does anyone know how and to whom direct such a request for minimum standards, or to also provide the infrastructure on maemo.org/packages?

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

wow .. i was going to post a same request ..
it would be pretty helpful if a small description of the change in the application could be added to the description column. Even if it just says "bug fixes" it would give a better understanding ..

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

It would be really nice to have a changelog in HAM.

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

Or like in buntu where you can see the changelog in synaptic before installing the package.
slightly off topic:
Actually having a hildonized modified synaptic on the device would be great, rather than re-inventing the wheel with HAM, which I guess is a complicated app to design.
This is THE most important app on the device.

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

HAM allows for this via the Maemo-Upgrade-Description field in the package's control file.

However, it requires the packager to update that as well as the debian/changelog file that you are expected to update (and doing so is required to change the version). I used to use it, but then I'd forget to update that field and updates would show the previous version's changelog (as it was rare for me to need to change debian/control again afterwards, but I'd be required to change debian/changelog as explained above).

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

HAM can show changelogs, but only if the package maintainer provides them. If it's not already a requirement for uploading a new package to extras(-testing), then I think it should be, as they are very useful.

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

Please vote for it in https://bugs.maemo.org/show_bug.cgi?id=3839 and maybe https://bugs.maemo.org/show_bug.cgi?id=5035

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

Again reinventing the wheel. It's already supposed to be in /usr/share/doc, why also put it somewhere else? Any reason? (changelogs can be then purged on a daily basics ala "hackers don't need docs")
This is loss of time IMO, but ham is just an example.

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

No, please not, as long as https://bugs.maemo.org/show_bug.cgi?id=6187 isn't resolved. I refuse to use the XB-Maemo-Upgrade field as long as this bug exists.

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

If I knew that Upgrade field breaks the Downloads description then I wouldn't have used it...

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

I don't think that upgrade field is used in downloads or packages interface atm

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

There's also a vague plan, AIUI, to have maemo.org/packages/ show the changelog. Another problem with XB-Maemo-Upgrade-Description is that you don't know what version a user is upgrading from; so they see "Small UI tweak" but they skipped over "Major rewrite with loss of functionality".

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

I would strongly plead for this vague plan to be be implemented. Whenever I searched for a changelog in the packages, except for one instance, I didn't find it. If the changelog figures on the packages page, package maintainers would have a motivation for this minimal piece of documentation. Even if the information is minimal, it would make me much more comfortable in installing things from maemo.org.

(Even better would be a bit more documentation and not have everything served as Easter eggs :rolleyes: but that's perhaps too much to ask for)

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

Find a developer who knows PHP, is willing to work on the source code, and will talk to X-Fade & Jeremiah about the implementation. That's the quickest way to get it done: scratch an itch.

https://garage.maemo.org/plugins/scm...=maemo2midgard

I dunno when X-Fade will get around to it, with everything else on his plate (one to ask at the next sprint meeting/on maemo-community).

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

Call be arrogant or ignorant, but the internal changelogs are way too heavy to be of any particular use: For instance the internal Debian changelog of libosso-abook right now weights 103 kByte and 1969 lines. The internal changelogs of many other packages are of similar weight or even heavier. They become that large because they are deeply integrated with the QM process. Shipping them would give everyone a really nice feeling, but I am pretty sure only very few people would actually read them. You'd get bored about them quickly with all the QM noise. Waste of disk space and bandwidth. IMHO.

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

I sometimes read changelogs. Having them always present is just good practice and means that when I want to know what has changed my curiosity is satisfied - not having them available means I'm left frustrated and annoyed/concerned by the broken process, as changelogs are the norm on other related platforms (Debian, Ubuntu etc.).

I too would also tend to steer clear of applications where the developer(s) are too lazy and/or too unprofessional to maintain a list of the changes - a changelog is not an indication of quality, but it does at least suggest a minimum level of competence.

Obviously a number of changes are necessary to promote the use of changelogs in both the App Manager on the device and the maemo.org website itself, but there should be no question that they are useful and should be made available, I would even go so far as suggesting that applications should not be promoted to extras unless each update is accompanied by a current changelog.

I don't think the additional disk space consumed by changelogs should be an issue - text compresses very well.

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

Hmm... any update on this?
http://maemo.org/packages shows now mostly a proper changelog. Are there plans or active development, to integrate something like this into the on the device integrated package manager?

In my opinion this is in the most cases as important as the package description.

Re: No changelog files in Maemo?
 

Maybe you can ask that in the Faster Application Manager thread!?