[Wine] Re: Lenny repository disappeared

[Forester]

Hi Guys,

The Debian Lenny repository for Wine has not disappeared.  It was never there.  You are not the first and I'm sure I'll not be the last to follow the instructions and then spend the rest of the day trying to figure out where you went wrong only to conclude you were misled.

I am not a 'member' of the Wine project and I cannot and do not speak for it.  I have been observing (while trying to contribute to) the project for a while now.  The Wine project owes so much to so few. The few recognise that there is much (that is important or urgent) that needs doing that does not get done.  This is because there just are not enough (suitable) volunteers to do it all.

For example,  the web pages.  It is easy to see when they are inaccurate or out of date but how many of us would know how to put them right ?

Most volunteers do just one thing and one thing only.  Anything else and they risk getting sucked into so much that they would let everyone down.

For example, if we asked nicely and repeatedly, we might get the Wine Forum moderators to put up STICKY posting to the effect that there is no Debian Lenny repository but I don't think we'd get them to correct the download page that gives the impression there is one (but there's an outside chance they might know someone who would).

Scott Ritchie does an excellent job of providing Ubuntu packages for Wine.  However (lookup him up on Wikipedia) I think he's an Ubuntu man with an interest in Wine, not the other way around.  So long as his name is against Debian packages I don't expect any regular or timely Debian packages however much I might want them.

The Wine project needs a volunteer to do this (and perhaps so long a Scott's name is up there, potential volunteers will be put off).

Actually, somebody did volunteer.  See http://forum.winehq.org/viewtopic.php?t=73&highlight=lenny.

He got no response from the Wine project.  If it had been me I'd have probably shrugged my shoulders and said it was their loss.  I wasn't me so I see it differently.  He made one offer, took no answer as a no and gave up.  That is not the kind of volunteer the project needs (and I mean needs not wants).

This isn't is a job application where all you have to do is leave your name and number on an answering machine to get an interview and to get the job all you have to do is show you have suitable experience and are motivated by money.

This is a volunteer job where the thing that counts most is your self-motivation to keep on doing (what you believe is) the right thing even though no-one is going to send you e-mail thanking you when you are on time or reminding you when you are late.

I can't volunteer.  I don't use Debian Lenny.  [Laughing]  Seriously, I want to.  I'm what they call a Application Maintainer.  As long as there is no Debian Lenny repository I can only test against my own builds, which is not good test methodology.  I need a volunteer and I would offer to help any such volunteer by testing my application against their Debian Lenny packages on a regular basis.

Unless, you've been working on the Debian project for the last five years, you may have a hard time getting the Wine project's attention.  Perhaps we need someone to do for Lenny what the anonymous Pole does for Etch (http://wine.x.pl/index_e.html).  Get half a dozen testers to test half a dozen applications regularly for six months and maybe the Wine project would take the volunteer seriously and allow upload to an official repository.

Remember, the forum is for discussion, so reply with your ideas and opinions.