Re: Q: Handling contributor patches

On 16/03/26 13:23, Andreas Tille wrote:
> Hi,
>
> thank you for running for DPL. I appreciate the time and effort it takes
> to step forward for this role, and I found your focus on diversity and
> encouraging new contributors particularly interesting.
>
> I'd like to start with a question related to that topic.
>
> Occasionally contributors submit bug reports that already contain a
> patch intended to fix or improve something. Sometimes such reports
> remain unanswered for many years, or the attached patch is rejected with
> only a brief explanation. While maintainers clearly have the final say
> over their packages and limited time, situations like this can be
> discouraging for contributors who have already invested effort into
> preparing a patch.
>
> In one recent case I looked at, a bug with an attached patch from 2014
> only received its first response more than a decade later.
>
> How do you think Debian should balance maintainer autonomy with a
> welcoming culture for contributors?

I agree that there should be a balance between the maintainer autonomy 
and welcoming new contributors, not just with respect to this specific 
patch submission issue. I myself have come across cases where while we 
say we welcome new contributions, many of our actions give negative 
message to the newbies. I do not have a solution right now, but this is 
in fact one of the points I would like to bring it up for discussions 
during my tenure.

> Do you see a role for project
> leadership in encouraging practices such as acknowledging patches,
> giving constructive explanations, or setting expectations about how
> contributions should be handled?
> I would be interested in your thoughts on how Debian can remain open to
> contributions while respecting the realities of volunteer maintenance.

I believe that the solution should not come from the leadership, but 
from the community - leadership can facilitate the discussions.

Having said that , where the packages are maintained by an active team, 
I have personally found things working smoothly with existing and new 
contributors.

>
> Kind regards
>      Andreas.
>

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