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.

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

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?

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 ..

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

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.

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).

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.

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

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.