[Reportbug-maint] Bug#457613: BTS: Server parsing replies inappropriately

[chaica]

tags 457613 moreinfo
tags 457613 unreproducible
thanks

Hi Mark,

Thanks for the bug report. If we stay focus on the first bug, because the other ones seem
more like wishes for new features, could you be more specific about the encountered errors
regarding "BTS server inappropriately responds to user messages" ?

Bye,
Carl Chenet


> ug#1: BTS server inappropriately responds to user messages
> The debian bug tracking system is sending me parse errors when I reply
> to responses from package maintainers.    Naturally, I reply to all recipients as this
> is necessary to insure that a copy gets to the maintainer and the BTS itself.
> control at ..... being included in the maintainers responses is probably implicated.
> BTS probably should not parse commands unless they are preceeded by some sort of
> escape character.
> 
> Bug#2: Where to report debian BTS bugs?
> This is a report on the BTS itself which either doesn't have a psuedo package name 
> of its own or the existence of said name is not properly documented on the web
> site where users can find it.   Bug #2
> 
> Bug #3: Disposition "overburdened"
>  Package maintainers frequently close bugs inappropriately 
> because they are overburdened.    Bugs should never be closed for this
> reason.    They should be tagged with a suitable disposition such as "overburdened"
> so they will eventually be fixed when an additional maintainer comes on board or
> the existing maintainers have more time.   So, I propose that this be added as a 
> standard category.   It is possible that the "help" disposition is intended for this; if so,
> it needs to be better documented that this is the case.   Fix involves adding
> a new disposition and/or improving documentation (including website and 
> debian policy manual)for maintainers.
> 
> Bug #4:  Bug Tacking System Interoperability.
> the debian bug tracking system does not appear to have facilities
> for reassigning bugs to foreign bug tracking systems (i.e. to the upstream package).
> This is not a small undertaking, but it needs to be done.   I am not a debian package
> maintainer but users are affected by this and it contributes to package maintainers 
> being overburdened.   This should be done in an automated
> way that preserves as much information as possible and links the systems together
> as much as possible so package maintainers are notified when a bug is 
> fixed upstream.   At the very least, hyperlinks should automatically be added
> from each system to the other.     You should be able to assign a package
> to fix-upstream and when it is fixed upstream it pehaps gets automatically 
> retagged "fixed-upstream".    Maintainers should have a menu for reassigning
> bugs that includes each dependency package and each upstream package.
> iceweasel would be a prime example.    mozilla doesn't accept bugs on the debian version.
>    - user submits bug
>    - debian packager verifies that it is a mozilla bug and not a debian induced bug
>       this would include testing on a stock firefox version.
>    - package maintainer reassings bug to mozilla.
>    - mozilla finds the problem is in a library and reassigns it upstream 
>      (for completeness, depends on their BTS, not debian's).
> Clearly debian users are not being properly served under the present system.
> Any software developed for this should have a permissive license so it can
> be linked to different bug tracking systems.  I am thinking that initially,
> the debian BTS could submit the bug on other systems web forms but longer
> term a common API should exist.   So, a basic library for submitting to
> web forms is needed, with support for mapping from one field to another and
> mapping values.   Email, with appropriately tagged info, could be used where
> foreign system takes bug reports by email.   Where each system has email notification
> of updates, the system could subscribe each to the other's list but protection
> is needed against mail loops.   Server command should be prefixed by a system
> id:
>     $$$server bugs.debian.org disposition=closed
>     $$$server bugzilla.mozilla.org disposition=closed
> bugzilla seems to support XML-RPC and seems close to being able to
> at least talk between bugzilla implementations:
> http://wiki.mozilla.org/Bugzilla:Meetings:2007-08-07 says:
> 
> "But with the coming implementation of Bug->update and additional 
> XML-RPC methods, it would become possible for one Bugzilla installation 
> to interact with other installations. This seems to be important enough 
> to worth calling the next release Bugzilla 4.0. Said otherwise, 
> Bugzilla 4.x installations would be able to talk to each other."
> 
> http://wiki.mozilla.org/Testopia:Documentation:XMLRPC
> 
> Bug #5: Filing multiple bugs in one report.
> While the debian system supports cloning, it would be better if bug reports
> were submitted broken down as:
>    - prologue (common to all)
>    - bug #1
>    - bug #2
>    - bug #3
>    - epilogue (common to all)
>    - automatically collected information
> This is easier with a web form.   Reportbug spawns an editor; the text could
> be prepopulated with tags to divide into sections.    Such a system would
> automatically create multiple bug reports, with hyperlinks cross referencing them.
> reportbug-ng could do a better job.
> 
> bug #6: BTS doesn't identify and link to the software used
>    http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~ian/debbugs/
>    Ironically, it doesn't include info on reporting bugs on the software.
> 
> Bugs numbered for ease of cloning.   
> 
> -- Package-specific info:
> ** Environment settings:
> EDITOR="scite"
> VISUAL="scite"
> INTERFACE="text"
> 
> ** /home/whitis/.reportbugrc:
> reportbug_version "3.8"
> mode standard
> ui text
> realname "Mark Whitis"
> email "whitis at freelabs.com"
> 
> -- System Information:
> Debian Release: lenny/sid
>   APT prefers unstable
>   APT policy: (990, 'unstable'), (500, 'testing'), (500, 'stable')
> Architecture: i386 (i686)
> 
> Kernel: Linux 2.6.22-2-686 (SMP w/1 CPU core)
> Locale: LANG=en_US, LC_CTYPE=en_US (charmap=ISO-8859-1)
> Shell: /bin/sh linked to /bin/bash
> 
> Versions of packages reportbug depends on:
> ii  apt                           0.7.9      Advanced front-end for dpkg
> ii  python                        2.4.4-6    An interactive high-level object-o
> ii  python-central                0.5.15     register and build utility for Pyt
> 
> reportbug recommends no packages.
> 
> -- no debconf information