[Python-Dev] discourage patch reviews to the list? (original) (raw)

François Pinard pinard at iro.umontreal.ca
Fri Feb 11 00:00:04 CET 2005

[Martin von Löwis]

I disagree with the primary reason not to take bug reports on python-dev, however: bug reports in email get lost if not immediately processed; usage of a tracker is necessary to actually "keep track".

Some developers and users appreciate bug trackers, or at least are able to stand them. Others, at least like me, just hate them.

When a developer replies to one of my emails, asking me that I use the bug tracker, my email was surely not lost, since the developer is replying to it. That developer could have used the bug tracker himself, the way he sees fit, instead of inviting me to do it.

In fact, a developer asking me to use the tracker of the day is trying to educate me into using it. Or maybe he knows that using the tracker is uneasy and is trying to spare himself some disgust. Or maybe he is consciously trying to turn me down :-). I do not buy the argument of the fear of emails being lost. Actually, almost all of my emails reporting bugs received a reply in one form or another, so developers do see them.

If a developer wants to use a bug tracker, then nice, good for him. For one, trackers merely tell me that I should get a life and do nicer things than reporting bugs. In any case, Python has plenty of users, and others will contribute anyway. So, after all, why should I?

So this kind of bug management is the primary reason for the tracker, not that we want to keep random users out of python-dev (although this is a convenient side effect).

Hey, that's good! Trackers may act like a randomiser! :-)

-- François Pinard http://pinard.progiciels-bpi.ca

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