[Kolab-devel] Re: What is the policy for the ChangeLog file?

[Bernhard Reiter]

Am Donnerstag, 8. Dezember 2005 21:36 schrieb Richard Bos:
> Op donderdag 8 december 2005 12:36, schreef Bernhard Reiter:
> > > The ChangeLog is distributed and installed in the doc directory.
> > >  cvs/svn logs and diff aren't.  That is another point of using the
> > > ChangeLog file.
> >
> > It would be possible to create the changelog during packaging,
>
> No that does not work.  The ChangeLog should be updated with every cvs
> update. 

This is just what I am discussing here.
To me: A repository system _should_ take care of keeping the changelog,
and then a plain changelog of one branch that you are packaging can just 
beretrieved. Partly this already works with cvs2cl.pl.

> as developer one should should just add something on top on the 
> ChangeLog summurazing the changes made to the module.  That way the
> ChangeLog is created and automatically kept up to date.

Each check-in the developer should summarize the changes to the files
and the module, so the information is in there.
Keeping a changelog seperately seems double  work to me.
(And it actually is, as I could see in a few project that I participate
that do have that policy.)

Note that even the GNU Coding Standards mention repository systems,
http://www.gnu.org/prep/standards/standards.html#Change-Logs
 	You can think of the change log as a conceptual “undo list” 
	which explains 	how earlier versions were different 
	from the current version.

	Another alternative is to record change log information 
	with a version control system

> > Usually a changelog is too detailed to be of any use,
> > except for a developer.
>
> Than the ChangeLog is not made correctly.  Anyway have a look at the
> ChangeLog that Marcus and me maintain and you see what I mean.
> Did you look at that one already:
> http://kolab.org/cgi-bin/viewcvs-kolab.cgi/server/kolabd/kolabd/ChangeLog?r
>ev=1.5&only_with_tag=MAIN&content-type=text/vnd.viewcvs-markup

I looked at it again, and this information _is_ mainly useful for developers;
which is fine for a ChangeLog like I know it.
Otherwise it would be a NEWS entry or an item in the admin/user documentation.

> > Customers sometimes  have the needs to look stuff up in there,
> > but they also find methods to access the repository.
>
> The ChangeLog would be a good start, as it summarizes which files has been
> changed when, and what.

I am in favour of a changelog, but ideally I would want one automatically 
created out of the repository. Next we need a good moment in time to 
change the policy, my idea would be to do this, when we move to SVN
which I hope will be in the near future (Q1 2006).

All developers naturally must agree on the policy.
So Martin, Steffen:

Do  you want Change Log requirement now?
Should a Change Log be automatically generated? Or manually kept?
Would a move to SVN change the situation?

Bernhard