[Reportbug-maint] Bug#672722: reportbug: Please generate ben files with transition bugs

[Niels Thykier]

Package: reportbug
Version: 6.3.1
Severity: wishlist
Tags: patch

Hi,

It would be much appreciated if reportbug could assist reporters by
generating "ben" files for transition bugs.  I have developed a
prototype patch that seems to work reasonable and that can be used as
a basis for this.

For testing, I have tried to use it to generate the current APT ben
file[1].  It can be done by following [2].

The generated files are only intended for the "common cases".  In
"rare cases", people may need to use some of the additional
functionality provided by ben (e.g. the "edos checks").
  I think it would be fine to as them to fill out the fields manaully
for now.

~Niels

[1] Generated result:

"""
Ben file:

title = "apt";
is_affected = .depends ~ /libapt-pkg4.10|libapt-inst1.2/ | .depends ~ "libept1" | .depends ~ /libapt-pkg4.12|libapt-inst1.5|libept1.4.12/;
is_good = .depends ~ /libapt-pkg4.12|libapt-inst1.5|libept1.4.12/;
is_bad = .depends ~ /libapt-pkg4.10|libapt-inst1.2/ | .depends ~ "libept1";

"""

[2]

"""

[...]

Choose the request type: 8
Please enter the name of the package: apt
[...]

To assist the release team, please fill in the following
information. You will be asked to provide package names of the library
package(s) that are the source of the transition. If more than one
library is changing the name, please use a space separated
list. Alternatively you can use a regex by enclosing the regex in
slashes ("/"). Please ensure that the "old" regex does not match the
"new" packages.

Please enter old binary package name of the library (or a regex matching it):/libapt-pkg4.10|libapt-inst1.2/ libept1
Please enter new binary package name of the library (or a regex matching it):/libapt-pkg4.12|libapt-inst1.5|libept1.4.12/

[...]

"""
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