[Tracker-discuss] bugs.python.org schema redesign

[Stephen J. Turnbull]

Brett Cannon writes:

 > >  > But I do not want to add the maintenance headache of listing every
 > >  > top-level module and package in the stdlib.
 > >
 > > XEmacs's tracker has had that from day 1.  It's not a burden at all.
 > >
 > >
 > How many do you guys have? Is it equivalent to Python's nearly 140?

Yes and maybe no.  I currently have things categorized into 12 generic
categories ("core code stable", "core code trunk", "website",
"tracker", ...), 1 "new package" category for requests to add an
externally maintained package, and 130 packages.  So on pure count
it's neck and neck.

But about 1/3 of the packages are applications (stuff like the
calendar package, several MUAs, a web browser, a couple of IRC
clients, a window manager for X11), another 1/3 implement editor modes
(cc-mode for C, AUCTeX for TeX/LaTeX, nXML, python-mode :-), and about
1/3 lower-level facilities (comint which provides command-shell-like
functionality, maillib approximately equivalent to Python's email
package, a wrapper for Xlib, etc.  So I have to admit that the kind of
thing that happens in Python with libraries built on packages built on
modules is much more limited, to about 35 of those packages.  And the
density of dependencies is lower.

Still, it's worthwhile in practice and not a hassle.  OPs don't
actually use the module flag very much (most issues come in by mail
still), it's mostly added in triage.  Nevertheless, they don't
complain about it being a required field in the web interface; I think
it's easy for ordinary users to make a pretty good guess at who should
look at the issue.  It is useful for our "external package
maintainers" (people who *use* XEmacs but *develop* a module) as a way
to flag "their issues".  And the maintainers don't mind the occasional
inaccuracy, they're quick to throw anything that doesn't belong to
them back over the fence, usually into a much more appropriate
backyard.

Maintenance is trivial, I do it through the web mostly.  New packages
are not exactly an everyday event.

The only real gripe I have is that the Roundup list widget stinks for
lists longer than fit on a single screen.  I need to write a thunk to
reformat that list into a multicolumn table that scrolls both
vertically and horizontally.