[H-GEN] Re: Project Idea: CVS repository

[Martin Pool]

On Tue, 4 Nov 1997, Anthony Towns wrote:

> > Part of Humbug's charter is (IIRC) to promote the use and development of
> > free software.  There's plenty of small-medium projects out there, like
> > Apache's mod_jserv, which are in need of a CVS repository like those used
> > to great effect by OpenBSD and its kin.
> 
> I'm not sure if anyone's said or done anything about this yet --
> certainly nothing's been mentioned publically. Anyway, I agree that it
> sounds like a cool idea.

Actually, since I last wrote Jon Stevens
(http://www.latchkey.com/images/me-trees.photo.gif) has established a
mod_jserv developers page at

  http://java.latchkey.com/

including a CVS repository.  (So now I have commit access to a distributed
free software project, which is pretty cool. :-)

Other interesting information on running a distributed free-software
project is available at:

  http://dev.apache.org/voting
  http://dev.apache.org/styleguide

Specifically: how to you make sure the repository doesn't shake wildly
as people change things without coordination?  One approach is to have
Linus driving the big red firetruck and arbitrating code changes.
Another approach, followed by the Apache Group, is to require people
to submit diffs to the list for voting before they committing them to
the tree.

> > And since I've finally started to get serious about getting a permanent
> net connection (probably via bit.net, at this point, although I haven't
> had a good hard look yet) I thought that this would be a cool use to put
> azure. 

Of course, there's lots of other free projects still looking for a home.

> I've also noticed the FSF's GNAT system; which I believe the apache
> people use for bug reporting. It seems quite nice; modulo GNU's usual
> fascination with over engineering systems. In particular it might be a
> cool thing to make available with the CVS repository, rather than just
> recommending everyone keep a "TODO" file listing any outstanding bugs
> or whatever.

The bug-tracking is actually called "GNATS".  GNAT is the Gnu Ada
<spit> Translator.

> I was also thinking of starting up a code review mailing list/web
> site. I like code reviews.

I think that list would be an excellent idea.  I like them too.

> Anyway: what sort of system would a CVS repository need? I can
> probably dedicate a gigabyte to it, but azure's not particularly fast
> or stable by most standards...

CVS is not very demanding.  The OpenBSD people require a gigabyte, and
their project is larger than most.

> Have you seen _Rapid Development_ by Steve McConnell, btw? (it's about
> the size of _Code Complete_, and there's one copy in McGill's now)

No, but I'll definitely check it out.

> I had a quick flip through it today (I bought the Meyer's _More
> Effective C++_ -- perfect SWOT vac material for someone who's not
> doing a single C++ subject)

:-)

> and it actually seemed pretty decent: thorough enough to even be
> relevant to a second year undergrad.

IMNSHO, most second-year undergrads don't even understand that they
need to read books like this, let alone have a grasp on the concepts
within them.  An understanding and appreciation of those books would
be one of the most important things I'd look for in an applicant for a
development position... but they're few and far between.

> ``NT, Networking, Security. Pick any two (you can't have all three).''
> 	-- _The Twelve Networking Truths_, RFC 1925, paraphrased 

Somewhere I have a two-line Perl .sig to crash NT4SP3...

--
Martin Pool

"Success is a lousy teacher, and an unreliable guide to the future" -- billg

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