Gregers Petersen wrote: > Hi Jose > > Jose Vasconcellos wrote: > >> Hello to fellow OpenWrt developers! >> >> I would like to start a discussion on how to improve OpenWrt. >> Part of the problem is that I don't fully understand OpenWrt >> as an organization. What are its goals? >> >> > > OpenWrt is described as a Linux distribution for embedded devices..... > > (ok. It was a kind of joke, but this is actually the goal of OpenWrt; to > develop a Linux based embedded system for both final solutions and > development) > > >> It's clear that OpenWrt consists of a core group of developers; >> I've gather this because they have write priviledges to svn. >> > > You could also have looked at: https://dev.openwrt.org/wiki/people > Thanks for the pointer. Somehow I missed that. >> What's not obvious is how other developers can help. I think >> a set of guidelines that's needs to be developed to define how >> contributions are handled. I think transparency is key to >> success. >> > > OpenWrt is in a lot of ways completely transparent, which again somehow > makes it somewhat of a "blackbox". There is not much more than what you > can see in the various irc channels, forum or the repository - this can > be so obvious that is simply wipes the transparency away, due to people > try to look for "more" (something like a big rationality or a grand > master plan/organization). > > The development process is based on direct participation - people who > are not (yet) acknowledged as being OpenWrt developers (with write > access to svn) should submit patches either on the devel-list or > directly in Trac. It is also a reality that it helps more than a little > to be active/participate on irc #openwrt-devel. > Submitted patches are evaluated, or looked at, by the current dev's - > and respons depends on factual things like relevance to current > individual interests, general applicability, quality of code etc. A > non-respons should not be understood in terms of a rejection, instead > the submitter/author should take a second look at the patch again, > follow the debates around the subject closely (how does this patch > relate to the bigger picture) and finally re-submit if needed. > Another approach would be to work on a patch and then discuss the > subject with one of the relevant developers on irc #openwrt-devel (good > questions are always highly appriciated). > When it comes to the point of becoming a dev (acquirering direct access > to svn and having ones name on the official list) it is also quite > simple: One day the current dev's will just decide that there is no > reason to continue with having to add patches for someone who's more > than able to handle/do it him/herself - and then a svn account will be > setup. > A metaphorical explanation; a dev in-the-becoming has to show > willingness to work, sweat and participate in the re-productive life of > OpenWrt. > > >> Of course, OpenWrt is not a commercial venture with deadlines >> and deliverables. But some kind of formal organization needs >> to be setup for the long term viability of the project. >> > > The interesting aspect here is that OpenWrt actually has been quite > viable and performing well _without_ a formal organization. If you have > been following some or the recent discussions on this list you will > see/read that OpenWrt is in the process of changing its status towards > becoming a non-profit entity. This is not done with the intention of > introducing a vertical structure with an elected board and so forth. > Instead the focus is on legal aspects and the betterment of supporting > OpenWrt. > The current group of dev's are not planning to instigate major changes > in the un-organized ways of OpenWrt, then there are significant values > in the existing model. > > I hope this was at least parts of an answer to you questions? > > Chz > As a recent contributor to the project, I've been a little frustrated. Before submitting patches, I tried to find out what the procedure is but I found conflicting instructions. My question on the forum has not been addressed in six months and it's on the sticky subject of how to submit a patch. I understand that my patches may not make it, but contributors need to get some kind of feedback. Saying the equivalent of "we would like to do it differently" does not help as it doesn't give me any information on how the developers would like it done and at the same time the developers are too busy to do it; I'm not saying they need to do it. But all parties agree that a change is needed but there's no means to resolve what to do.
A better set of patch guidelines would help other developers and users alike. Recently, I was looking at samba issues and a quick look at the source revealed some significant changes in the operwrt port. In #openwrt-devel blogic explained the reasoning behind that. That's is good but such a change should have been documented in a note in the corresponding package directory. Another area that needs some thought is how to capture user requirements. That may sound a little demanding so maybe a better word is user needs. These can be managed by Trac but some thought should be put into it. From the forum and irc discussions, it's clear to me that development could be smoother if these user needs could be tracked better. This may sound like additional work but it could save work in the long term. _______________________________________________ openwrt-devel mailing list openwrt-devel@lists.openwrt.org http://lists.openwrt.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/openwrt-devel
