Re: [gentoo-dev] Stuff that makes people mad

[Chris Gianelloni <wolf31o2@gentoo.org>]

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On Thu, 2004-05-20 at 21:46, C. Brewer wrote:
> 	Is it just me, or does any one else get the feeling that something's gone 
> wrong with this distro? Lately it seems devs just do what the heck they want, 
> and the only time anyone notices is if someone is polite to give everyone a 
> heads-up first. This used to be community development, but had gone to  thug 
> development. If we can't get features we ask for, let's just screw it then 
> and drop all the use flags. Hell, lets get crazy and impose developer term 
> limits, that way the jaded devs can be recycled and the fresh blood will  
> keep the momentum going. And since we're all gonna have huge overlays, cut 
> back to about 20 devs, that ought to do it, since we'll leave the real work 
> to the end-user.
> 
> If you thought all the above was sheer insanity, it doesn't sound too far off 
> the crap on this ml, or some of the crap  on bugzilla::::(

While we're at it, why don't we dissolve all governments and stop using
money.  Anarchy and the barter system are just so much better.  After
all, it is the *government* that keeps me from making my own money!

Now, let's get back to this little place we like to call reality.  There
yet?  Good.

All of us Gentoo developers are volunteers.  We do this for fun.  We do
this unpaid, in our spare time.  We all have lives other than Gentoo. 
Sometimes, a feature simply cannot be done in the amount of time that
the people requesting it want it done in.  Sometimes the feature being
requested simply doesn't have enough demand or enough merit to be
included.  Sometimes a feature doesn't get included simply because the
developer maintaining the package simply doesn't have the time nor the
expertise to implement the requested feature.

Being a complete pain about something does no good to serve Gentoo or
yourself.  In the end, all you end up doing is looking like how you're
acting.  If you want a feature added, send patches.  If the developer
refuses to implement the feature, get more support.  Contact devrel. 
Contact the ombudsman.  Follow procedure and you're much more likely to
get what you want than sending obviously inflamatory messages to a
mailing list.  Your original email is nothing more than you trying to
start trouble.  Think about this.  Take an hour to sit back and realize
that this is only software.  It isn't like we're murdering baby seals
with a pitchfork by not implementing your feature.

I tend to agree with both sides of the argument on certain valid points
each has.  Just remember that this is something we do for fun. 
Sometimes we get a bit too heated on what we feel about this great big
mess of stuff we call Gentoo, but in the end, it's just a bunch of ones
and zeros stored magnetically on a platter or two.  It really has no
bearing on the essentials of life.

Think about that before raising your blood pressure even more over
something that really isn't that important in the grand scheme of
things.

-- 
Chris Gianelloni
Developer
Games/LiveCD Teams
Gentoo Linux

Is your power animal a penguin?

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