This document answers frequently asked questions of new Debian GNU/Linux developers. Copyright (C) 1994 Ted Hajek -- Please notify me of any errors herein. -- =============== Contents: * Question 1:: Where is the private FTP directory? * Question 2:: Where can I find the standards for creating packages? * Question 3:: What's the FSSTND? * Question 4:: How do I find out "who's doing what"? How do I find out which packages are available? * Question 5:: How do I report a bug in a Debian GNU/Linux package? * Question 6:: How do I commit to maintaining a new package? * Question 7:: What are "contrib" and "non-free" packages? * Question 8:: What needs to be done? * Question 9:: Who is in charge? * Question 10:: What is the Debian Linux Association? * Appendix:: The Debian Manifesto *********************************** Question 1 Where is the private FTP directory? *********************************** The private FTP directory is on sunsite.unc.edu; the path is /pub/Linux/distributions/debian/private/project/ >From now on, this directory will be referred to as (private-root). ***************************************************** Question 2 Where can I find the standards for creating packages? ***************************************************** Look in the directory (private-root)/standards You'll find the following: * `FSSTND-FAQ' -- faq list about the linux filesystem standard. * `fsstnd-xx.xx.xx' -- most recent version of the FSSTND * `fsstnd.xx.gz' -- dvi and postscript versions of the FSSTND * `Guidelines' - the latest packaging guidelines. * `hello-1.3-x.deb' - a sample binary package * `hello-1.3-x.tar.gz' - a sample source package * `hello-1.3-x.diff.gz' - a sample patch used to create the \ "Debianized" source from the original. * `debian.postinst' - a sample post-installation script * `debian.postrm' - a sample post-removal script * `debian.rules' - a sample makefile used to generate a package. ****************** Question 3 What's the FSSTND? ****************** The Linux Filesystem Standard is a document produced by individuals who originally worked on the "FSSTND" channel of the Linux-activists mailing list. As its name implies, it is an attempt to standardize the arrangement of filesystems on Linux systems. Debian GNU/Linux is intended to be fully compliant with the Filesystem Standard. Therefore, it's a good idea to read the document before putting together any packages. ******************************************************* Question 4 Which packages are available? Who is maintaining them? ******************************************************* Look in (private-root)/admin You'll find a several lists, in different order and keyed on various fields, of the current packages and their maintainers. *********************************** Question 5 How do I report a bug in a package? *********************************** There's a description of the bug-tracking system in the file: (private-root)/admin/bug-tracking-system. Here's the gist: send a message to `debian-bugs@pixar.com'. Include the package name and a (very) concise description in the subject line. After the header and before you start typing the report, include the following two lines: Package: (package name) Version: (package version) The bugs currently show up on the debian-devel mailing list. Ian Jackson has automated the system such that a list of unresolved bugs is sent to the development mailing list on a weekly basis. Furthermore, you can get a list of unresolved bugs at any time by pointing your WWW client at the URL: http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/users/iwj10/debian-bugs/ ********************************************* Question 6 How to I commit to maintaining a new package? ********************************************* Send e-mail to Ian Murdock indicating your desire to maintain the package. Carbon-copy the message to Jim Robinson , the maintainer of the list of maintainers. ******************************************* Question 7 What are "contrib" and "non-free" packages? ******************************************* "Contrib" and "non-free" packages are those not included in the distribution proper due to restrictive copyrights or a highly unstable nature. These packages are kept out of the distribution proper to ease the creation and distribution of Debian GNU/Linux CD's. Non-Free Packages ================= "Non-free" packages are those kept out of the distribution proper because of copyright problems. Here's an excerpt from "Guidelines for Creating and Maintaining Debian Packages" by Ian Jackson: Ensure that distribution is possible in binary and source form without restrictions on modification, redistribution and for-profit use of the package. All submissions to be included in the distribution proper must be free of such restrictions or they cannot be included. For example, the "ncftp" package is non-free because it cannot be redistributed for profit without the consent of its author. Similarly, "xv" is non-free because it is shareware. These packages are submitted so that a large amount of software is available in the Debian GNU/Linux format. User-Contributed Packages ========================= The majority of the packages designated as "user-contributed" and hence kept out of the distribution proper consist of software in an alpha or test-release stage. For example, the Linux DOS emulator is in the "contrib" category. ********************** Question 8 What needs to be done? ********************** Testing the current alpha release is certainly valuable, as is packaging your favorite software. There are a bunch of other tasks looking for volunteers; if you read the mailing list for a short time you will find something to do. ***************** Question 9 Who is in charge? ***************** Ian Murdock is in charge. As far as I can tell, this whole thing started as his idea. Originally, Ian was doing the vast majority (if not all) the work of putting together the distribution; the others acted as beta-testers. Eventually, it was decided that the current distributed development strategy, with a number of maintainers each handling a number of packages under a common set of standards and guidelines, would be more efficient. Ian still maintains a lot of stuff and is the head of the project. ************************************* Question 10 What is the Debian Linux Association? ************************************* >From the general Debian GNU/Linux FAQ: The Debian Linux Association (DLA) is an organization that has been formed to serve as the official maintainer and central supporter of Debian. Please note that the DLA, while legally a business entity does not exist for profit's sake. Its primary objective is to advance the cause of free software by making a system based entirely upon free software available to everyone who wants it and by further developing and improving it. ******************** Appendix The Debian Manifesto ******************** The Debian Linux Manifesto Written by Ian A. Murdock Revised 01/06/94 What is Debian Linux? ===================== Debian Linux is a brand-new kind of Linux distribution. Rather than being developed by one isolated individual or group, as other distributions of Linux have been developed in the past, Debian is being developed openly in the spirit of Linux and GNU. The primary purpose of the Debian project is to finally create a distribution that lives up to the Linux name. Debian is being carefully and conscientiously put together and will be maintained and supported with similar care. It is also an attempt to create a non-commercial distribution that will be able to effectively compete in the commercial market. It will eventually be distributed by The Free Software Foundation on CD-ROM, and The Debian Linux Association will offer the distribution on floppy disk and tape along with printed manuals, technical support and other end-user essentials. All of the above will be available at little more than cost, and the excess will be put toward further development of free software for all users. Such distribution is essential to the success of the Linux operating system in the commercial market, and it must be done by organizations in a position to successfully advance and advocate free software without the pressure of profits or returns. Why is Debian being constructed? ================================ Distributions are essential to the future of Linux. Essentially, they eliminate the need for the user to locate, download, compile, install and integrate a fairly large number of essential tools to assemble a working Linux system. Instead, the burden of system construction is placed on the distribution creator, whose work can be shared with thousands of other users. Almost all users of Linux will get their first taste of it through a distribution, and most users will continue to use a distribution for the sake of convenience even after they are familiar with the operating system. Thus, distributions play a very important role indeed. Despite their obvious importance, distributions have attracted little attention from developers. There is a simple reason for this: they are neither easy nor glamorous to construct and require a great deal of ongoing effort from the creator to keep the distribution bug-free and up-to-date. It is one thing to put together a system from scratch; it is quite another to ensure that the system is easy for others to install, is installable and usable under a wide variety of hardware configurations, contains software that others will find useful, and is updated when the components themselves are improved. Many distributions have started out as fairly good systems, but as time passes attention to maintaining the distribution becomes a secondary concern. A case-in-point is the Softlanding Linux System (better known as SLS). It is quite possibly the most bug-ridden and badly maintained Linux distribution available; unfortunately, it is also quite possibly the most popular. It is, without question, the distribution that attracts the most attention from the many commercial "distributors" of Linux that have surfaced to capitalize on the growing popularity of the operating system. This is a bad combination indeed, as most people who obtain Linux from these "distributors" receive a bug-ridden and badly maintained Linux distribution. As if this wasn't bad enough, these "distributors" have a disturbing tendency to misleadingly advertise non-functional or extremely unstable "features" of their product. Combine this with the fact that the buyers will, of course, expect the product to live up to its advertisement and the fact that many may believe it to be a commercial operating system (there is also a tendency not to mention that Linux is free nor that it is distributed under the GNU General Public License). To top it all off, these "distributors" are actually making enough money from their effort to justify buying larger advertisements in more magazines; it is the classic example of unacceptable behavior being rewarded by those who simply do not know any better. Clearly something needs to be done to remedy the situation. How will Debian attempt to put an end to these problems? ======================================================== The Debian design process is open to ensure that the system is of the highest quality and that it reflects the needs of the user community. By involving others with a wide range of abilities and backgrounds, Debian is able to be developed in a modular fashion. Its components are of high quality because those with expertise in a certain area are given the opportunity to construct or maintain the individual components of Debian involving that area. Involving others also ensures that valuable suggestions for improvement can be incorporated into the distribution during its development; thus, a distribution is created based on the needs and wants of the users rather than the needs and wants of the constructor. It is very difficult for one individual or small group to anticipate these needs and wants in advance without direct input from others. Debian Linux will also be distributed on physical media by the Free Software Foundation and the Debian Linux Association. This provides Debian to users without access to the Internet or FTP and additionally makes products and services such as printed manuals and technical support available to all users of the system. In this way, Debian may be used by many more individuals and organizations than is otherwise possible, the focus will be on providing a first-class product and not on profits or returns, and the margin from the products and services provided may be used to improve the software itself for all users whether they paid to obtain it or not. The Free Software Foundation plays an extremely important role in the future of Debian. By the simple fact that they will be distributing it, a message is sent to the world that Linux is not a commercial product and that it never should be, but that this does not mean that Linux will never be able to compete commercially. For those of you who disagree, I challenge you to rationalize the success of GNU Emacs and GCC, which are not commercial software but which have had quite an impact on the commercial market regardless of that fact. The time has come to concentrate on the future of Linux rather than on the destructive goal of enriching oneself at the expense of the entire Linux community and its future. The development and distribution of Debian may not be the answer to the problems that I have outlined in the Manifesto, but I hope that it will at least attract enough attention to these problems to allow them to be solved.