Re: [Opensync-devel] Fixing the OpenSync core development BUS factor

[Daniel G. <go...@b1...>]

On Monday 26 October 2009 11:26:03 am Graham Cobb wrote:
> > Are there any volunteers for following components?
> 
> I wonder if we are going about this the wrong way?  It is extremely logical
>  to  get the core working properly before worrying about the plugins.  But
>  it doesn't seem to be working in motivating developers.

Good point ...

> 
> I think part of the problem is that while the format plugins (in
>  particular)  are broken, no one can use the code they are working on.  I
>  find I am more motivated to work on the engine if I am solving problems
>  which allow me to make progress with my personal goals, and my personal
>  usage.
> 
> How about, now that the engine API is **reasonably** stable, we concentrate
>  on  getting the plugins to work.  Solve some problems like timezones,
>  recurrences, conversions, etc. and get basic sync working for both
>  contacts and events (at least).  Don't even worry about merge/demerge for
>  the moment. That would give us something which, while not releasable to
>  end users, would at least allow the developers to start using it in their
>  daily lives.  The developers would then start to hit the remaining engine
>  problems
> (capabilities, timeouts, IPC deadlocks, conversion paths, mapping, etc.)
>  and  would be more motivated to work on them.


Currently i do only basic testing with contact syncing. No event/todo calendar 
syncing or so ... since event/todo format handling is more complex and has 
still lots of FIXMEs in place ...

But i guess it doesn't change anyhting if i just recommend that concentrate on 
contact syncing -not on calendar syncing for timing being.

I hesistate a bit working on calendar syncing since this is extremly time 
consuming, and also could done by other/new developers which are not so much 
in the core of OpenSync.

Another reason why i'm not concentrating on calendar-syncing is that i still 
think of replacing XMLFormat-plugin with another common-format plugin which is  
based on some PIM-Format-handler library ... something which came up when we 
talked how Synthesis and OpenSync could benefit from each other .. there the 
idea of a libvxx  came up ... maybe something we should look into before we 
start fixing the calendar-format plugins?


> 
> Of course, the danger is that developers do not try to fix the engine
>  problems  if things are working "well enough" for them.  But that can't be
>  worse than the current situation where no progress is happening at
>  all.  And it would encourage new developers -- I don't see how we are
>  going to get new people to join when things are as theoretical as they are
>  now: people want to be able to try things.

Fully agree!

So the bottom-line is that we need to get something working ... so developers 
can play with it and start fixing other stuff. For me this means i need to do 
another bug-screening round and check for bugs which block people for basic 
use ... or could someone else screen the open tickets for such issues, so we 
get re-priorties tickets to work on?

In meanwhile i try to reply to all the techincal question mails ...

-- 
Daniel Gollub                        Geschaeftsfuehrer: Ralph Dehner
FOSS Developer                       Unternehmenssitz:  Vohburg
B1 Systems GmbH                      Amtsgericht:       Ingolstadt
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