[Python-Dev] Re: Stability and change (original) (raw)

Jeremy Hylton jeremy@zope.com
Wed, 10 Apr 2002 18:47:13 -0400

"SM" == Skip Montanaro <skip@pobox.com> writes:

SM> I think I need to write a PEP.

Everyone needs to write a PEP, just ask Raymond Hettinger.

SM> There is perception and there is reality. I believe the reality SM> is that Python is pretty stable. There seems to be a perception SM> outside of the python-dev community that it is not. In large SM> measure this thread has been more about what to do about SM> perceived instability than actual instability.

I agree.

SM> You need to make measurements that demonstrate to people that SM> your code base is getting more stable, if only for PR purposes.

I think this is the crux of your argument, and the part I have overlooked. It doesn't matter if we make a release or I call my grandmother and chat. We just need a regular measurement interval. Then we can say: "We fixed 16 bugs since Jeremy last talked to Grannie." Or since we made a release, or whatever.

SM> Associating those metrics with specific release points would, I SM> think, provide more confidence in those numbers. It's cheap to SM> add a new tag to CVS.

[...]

SM> Even if not a single soul downloads and builds a particular SM> snapshot, creating such snapshots helps because they provide you SM> with static points in the CVS repository from which to make SM> measurements.

We could just use a snapshot generated by date In fact, there's a cron job on SF that generates a nightly tarball. I'll bet no one has ever downloaded one.

SM> I'm not suggesting that PythonLabs take on the extra burden of SM> making a bug of measurements. Just provide the tickmarks for SM> the graph.

I don't see any value to producing more tarballs or tags or releases in order to mark the occasion of measuring progress on fixing bugs. Just make the measurement.

BTW, what measurements are you proposing to make? How will you make them? What will they tell us?

Jeremy