GNU bug report logs - #19299
25.0.50; "Contributing" button in *About GNU Emacs* no longer works

Previous Next

To add a comment to this bug, you must first unarchive it, by sending
a message to control AT debbugs.gnu.org, with unarchive 19299 in the body.
You can then email your comments to 19299 AT debbugs.gnu.org in the normal way.

Toggle the display of automated, internal messages from the tracker.

Message #5 received at submit <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Ulrich Mueller <ulm <at> gentoo.org>
To: bug-gnu-emacs <at> gnu.org
Subject: 25.0.50; "Contributing" button in *About GNU Emacs* no longer works
Date: Mon, 8 Dec 2014 00:23:00 +0100

In master, the CONTRIBUTE file was recently moved (back) from etc/ to
the top-level dir. This breaks the corresponding button in the about
page. To reproduce, type "M-x about-emacs RET" and then press the
"Contributing" button:

   view-file: /usr/share/emacs/25.0.50/etc/CONTRIBUTE does not exist

From its new location, the file won't even be installed any more.

(Note: The file had been moved from top-level to etc in 2007.)

Message #8 received at 19299 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Glenn Morris <rgm <at> gnu.org>
To: stephen_leake <at> stephe-leake.org
Cc: 19299 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, Ulrich Mueller <ulm <at> gentoo.org>
Subject: Re: bug#19299: 25.0.50;
 "Contributing" button in *About GNU Emacs* no longer works
Date: Mon, 08 Dec 2014 12:01:52 -0500

Ulrich Mueller wrote:

> In master, the CONTRIBUTE file was recently moved (back) from etc/ to
> the top-level dir. This breaks the corresponding button in the about
> page. To reproduce, type "M-x about-emacs RET" and then press the
> "Contributing" button:
>
>    view-file: /usr/share/emacs/25.0.50/etc/CONTRIBUTE does not exist
>
>>From its new location, the file won't even be installed any more.
>
> (Note: The file had been moved from top-level to etc in 2007.)

Yes, this file was moved into etc from top-level specifically so it 
would be part of the installed Emacs. Personally I don't think that 
moving it out again makes much sense, but if people really want to do 
that, it needs more work. It needs to be in the installed Emacs, so a
special install rule will need to be written. The doc references that
refer to it being in the etc/ directory (grep will find these) will need
to be rewritten to account for it being in different places in installed
and uninstalled Emacs. Personally I think it would be a lot simpler to
move it back where it was and put a stub CONTRIBUTE at top-level that
just says "see etc/CONTRIBUTE". (But again, personally I don't think
this makes much sense.)

Please also note that ChangeLog entries are written in the present
tense ("deleted", "merged", "renamed", etc), start with capitals, and
end with full-stops.

Message #13 received at 19299 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Glenn Morris <rgm <at> gnu.org>
To: stephen_leake <at> stephe-leake.org
Cc: 19299 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, Ulrich Mueller <ulm <at> gentoo.org>
Subject: Re: bug#19299: 25.0.50;
 "Contributing" button in *About GNU Emacs* no longer works
Date: Mon, 08 Dec 2014 16:45:28 -0500

PS perhaps there is some confusion as to the purpose of this file.

The intended audience for etc/CONTRIBUTE is people who are not Emacs
developers and do not have write access to the repo. So it
specifically does not talk about how to commit things to Savannah, etc.
(People may have added bits of such information to the file in error.)
Many people just want to send a patch, not get write access.
That was why CONTRIBUTE needs to be in the installed Emacs.

"What people who commit to Emacs need to know" is a much more lengthy
document, and IMO should be a separate one. (IIRC, Xue Fuqiao wrote a
version of it the last time this came up; see emacs-devel archives.
I have to say that I didn't like that version much.)

Such a document is obviously long overdue.

Message #18 received at 19299-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Stephen Leake <stephen_leake <at> stephe-leake.org>
To: 19299-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: 19299 fixed
Date: Wed, 24 Dec 2014 07:56:50 -0600

2014-12-19  Stephen Leake  <stephen_leake <at> stephe-leake.org>

	Move user-level information from CONTRIBUTE to doc/emacs/trouble.texi

	Fixes bug#19299

	* CONTRIBUTE: Move user-level information to doc/emacs/trouble.texi
	  (commit messages): new, gathered from comments on emacs-devel
	  (Changelog notes): add reference to GNU coding standards section 5.2;
	  doc 'present tense', bug fix format
	  (branches): freeze announcements are made on info-gnu-emacs mailing
	  list
	  (git vs rename): new

	* doc/emacs/trouble.texi: Move user-level information from CONTRIBUTE here

	* lisp/startup.el (fancy-about-text): change buttons for etc/CONTRIBUTE
	  to (info "(emacs)Contributing")

-- 
-- Stephe

Previous Next

GNU bug tracking system
Copyright (C) 1999 Darren O. Benham, 1997,2003 nCipher Corporation Ltd, 1994-97 Ian Jackson.