Re: send-pr and multiple databases

[Milan Zamazal]

>>>>> "YS" == Yngve Svendsen <address@hidden> writes:

    YS> The current GNATS 4 documentation no longer mentions the
    YS> "config" file,

Huh?  I can see the node "The `config' file" in my documentation.

    YS> since most of the functions of this file was moved to the new
    YS> dbconfig file.

Right, the documentation needs to be completely updated.  I'll do this
as soon as various disasters relax to pursue me permanently.

    YS> However, in order to change the default behaviour of send-pr.sh,
    YS> one still has to make a config file. According to the script,
    YS> this file is supposed to be called send-pr.conf and it is to be
    YS> located (by default) in /usr/local/etc/gnats. This is not
    YS> documented, and no default send-pr.conf is created during
    YS> installation.

This is a hack.  It was introduced for Debian, since it's totally
unsuitable to configure anything by editing a script in /usr/bin/.

    YS> I would like to suggest that all database-specific parameters
    YS> such as DEFAULT_ORGANIZATION and MAIL_ADDR are removed from the
    YS> script itself and put in a default send-pr.conf in the defaults
    YS> directory. Then send-pr gets a new command-line option -d which
    YS> is used to select a database to send the PR to.

I don't think it's necessary to remove the parameters from the file--in
simple installations they can be fine.  However there should be a way to
override the defaults easily.  The problem of the current send-pr.conf
is that it doesn't handle multiple destinations well.  Any suggestions
how to do it in a better way?

    YS> All this is assuming that the mkdist utility is really gone (I
    YS> could find no explicit account in the ChangeLog as to what was
    YS> done to it, except that all the mkdist manpages were removed at
    YS> some point),

Yes, I was surprised by that as well.  I don't know what was the
intention of that action, nor CVS logs seem to explain it. :-(

    YS> and that send-pr is really only supposed to be a local tool,
    YS> speaking directly to gnatsd.

I'd like to have in GNATS something like `reportbug' in Debian.  It is a
simple tool which asks you for basic properties of your problem report,
if you're online and the destination database is available it displays
you already reported bugs, etc. and thus guides you a bit through the
process of reporting the bug.

But it is a post-4 task (unless someone volunteers to redesign send-pr
himself).  For now, I wouldn't touch the script except fixing the
configuration and of course documenting it.

Regards,

Milan Zamazal

-- 
Omigod, it's a flame war about a flame war.  You know, a meta-flame war!
                                                 Kenny Tilton in comp.lang.lisp