1 @c -*- coding: utf-8; mode: texinfo; -*-
5 This chapter deals with defects, feature requests, and
6 miscellaneous development tasks.
9 * Introduction to issues::
11 * Bug Squad checklists::
12 * Issue classification::
13 * Adding issues to the tracker::
14 * Summary of project status::
15 * Finding the cause of a regression::
19 @node Introduction to issues
20 @section Introduction to issues
22 @warning{Unless otherwise specified, all the tasks in this chapter
23 are @qq{simple} tasks: they can be done by a normal user with
24 nothing more than a web browser, email, and lilypond.}
26 @qq{Issues} isn't just a politically-correct term for @qq{bug}.
27 We use the same tracker for feature requests and code TODOs, so
28 the term @qq{bug} wouldn't be accurate. Despite the difference
29 between @qq{issue} and @qq{bug}, we call our team of contributors
30 who organize issues the @emph{Bug Squad}.
32 The Bug Squad is mainly composed of non-programmers -- their job
33 is to @emph{organize} issues, not solve them. Their duties
34 include removing false bug reports, ensuring that any real bug
35 report contains enough information for developers, and checking
36 that a developer's fix actually resolves the problem.
38 New volunteers for the Bug Squad should contact the
39 @ref{Meisters, Bug Meister}.
43 @section Bug Squad setup
45 We highly recommend that you configure your email to use effective
46 sorting; this can reduce your workload @emph{immensely}. The
47 email folders names were chosen specifically to make them work if
48 you sort your folders alphabetically.
53 Skim through every section of this chapter, @ref{Issues}. Read in
54 detail any sections called @qq{Bug Squad...}, or any page linked
55 from @ref{Bug Squad checklists}.
58 If you do not have one already, create a gmail account and send
59 the email address to the @ref{Meisters, Bug Meister}.
62 Subscribe your gmail account to @code{bug-lilypond}.
65 Configure your google code account:
70 Sign in to google code by clicking in the top-right corner of:
73 @uref{http://code.google.com/p/lilypond/issues/list}
77 Go to your @qq{Profile}, and select @qq{Settings}.
80 Scroll down to @qq{Issue change notification}, and make sure that
81 you have @emph{selected} @qq{If I starred the issue}.
86 Configure your email client:
91 Any email sent with your gmail address in the @code{To:} or
92 @code{CC:} fields should go to a @code{bug-answers} folder.
94 When setting up your filtering rules, be aware that Google Code
95 might use different versions of your email address, such as ones
96 ending in @code{googlemail.com} or @code{gmail.com}.
99 Any other email either from, or CC'd to,
102 lilypond@@googlecode.com
106 should go into a separate @code{bug-ignore} folder. Alternately,
107 you may automatically delete these emails.
109 You will @strong{not read} these emails as part of your Bug Squad
110 duties. If you are curious, go ahead and read them later, but it
111 does @strong{not} count as Bug Squad work.
114 Any other email sent to (or CC'd to):
121 should go into a separate @code{bug-current} folder.
128 @node Bug Squad checklists
129 @section Bug Squad checklists
131 When you do Bug Squad work, start at the top of this page and work
132 your way down. Stop when you've done 15 minutes.
134 Please use the email sorting described in @ref{Bug Squad setup}.
135 This means that (as Bug Squad members) you will only ever respond
136 to emails sent or CC'd to the @code{bug-lilypond} mailing list.
139 @subsubheading Emails to you personally
141 You are not expected to work on Bug Squad matters outside of your
142 15 minutes, but sometimes a confused user will send a bug report
143 (or an update to a report) to you personally. If that happens,
144 please forward such emails to the @code{bug-lilypond} list so that
145 the currently-active Bug Squad member(s) can handle the message.
148 @subsubheading Daily schedule
153 Tuesday: James Bailey
155 Thursday: Phil Holmes
156 Friday: Urs Liska, Patrick
161 @subsubheading Emails to @code{bug-answers}
163 Some of these emails will be comments on issues that you added to
167 If they are asking for more information, give the additional
171 If the email says that the issue was classified in some other
172 manner, read the rationale given and take that into account for
173 the next issue you add.
176 Otherwise, move them to your @code{bug-ignore} folder.
180 Some of these emails will be discussions about Bug Squad work;
184 @subsubheading Emails to @code{bug-current}
186 Dealing with these emails is your main task. Your job is to get
187 rid of these emails in the first method which is applicable:
191 If the email has already been handled by a Bug Squad member (i.e.
192 check to see who else has replied to it), delete it.
195 If the email is a question about how to use LilyPond, reply with
199 For questions about how to use LilyPond, please read our
200 documentation available from:
201 @uref{http://lilypond.org/website/manuals.html}
202 or ask the lilypond-user mailing list.
206 If a bug report is not in the form of a Tiny example, direct the
207 user to resubmit the report with this response:
210 I'm sorry, but due to our limited resources for handling bugs, we
211 can only accept reports in the form of Tiny examples. Please see
212 step 2 in our bug reporting guidelines:
213 @uref{http://lilypond.org/website/bug-reports.html}
218 If anything is unclear, ask the user for more information.
220 How does the graphical output differ from what the user expected?
221 What version of lilypond was used (if not given) and operating
222 system (if this is a suspected cause of the problem)? In short,
223 if you cannot understand what the problem is, ask the user to
224 explain more. It is the user's responsibility to explain the
225 problem, not your responsibility to understand it.
228 If the behavior is expected, the user should be told to read the
232 I believe that this is the expected behaviour -- please read our
233 documentation about this topic. If you think that it really is a
234 mistake, please explain in more detail. If you think that the
235 docs are unclear, please suggest an improvement as described by
236 @qq{Simple tasks -- Documentation} on:
237 @uref{http://lilypond.org/website/help-us.html}
241 If the issue already exists in the tracker, send an email to that
245 This issue has already been reported; you can follow the
246 discussion and be notified about fixes here:
250 (copy+paste the google code issue URL)
253 Accept the report as described in
254 @ref{Adding issues to the tracker}.
258 All emails should be CC'd to the @code{bug-lilypond} list so that
259 other Bug Squad members know that you have processed the email.
261 @warning{There is no option for @qq{ignore the bug report} -- if
262 you cannot find a reason to reject the report, you must accept
267 @c Try omitting this from Bug Squad duties
269 @subheading Updates / discussion about issues
271 We try to keep discussions about issues on the tracker, but
272 sometimes it spills over onto email. If discussion has ended with
273 no patch / resolution and at least @strong{3 days} have passed,
279 Summarize the recent discussion on the tracker, and add a link to
280 the original discussion.
283 Add the comment @qq{there was some technical discussion which I
284 could not understand}, and include a link to the original
287 We do not expect Bug Squad members to be programmers, or even to
288 be moderately-skilled users. Your job is to keep track of issue
289 reports; it is @emph{perfectly acceptable} to not understand
290 discussions between advanced users and/or developers.
296 @subheading Regular maintenance
298 After @strong{every release} (both stable and unstable):
303 Regression test comparison: if anything has changed suspiciously,
304 ask if it was deliberate. The official comparison is online, at:
306 @c NOTE: leave this here. In this case, it's worth duplicating
309 @uref{http://lilypond.org/test/}
312 More information is available from in
313 @ref{Precompiled regression tests}.
317 Issues to verify: try to reproduce the bug with the latest
318 version; if you cannot reproduce the bug, mark the item
319 @qq{Verified} (i.e. @qq{the fix has been verified to work}).
322 @uref{http://code.google.com/p/lilypond/issues/list?can=7}
325 A few (approximately 10%) of these fixed issues relate to the
326 build system or fundamental architecture changes; there is no way
327 for you to verify these. Leave those issues alone; somebody else
334 @c try omitting from daily tasks for now. -gp
336 Once every @strong{two weeks} or so:
341 Check for any incorrectly-classified items in the tracker. This
342 generally just means looking at the grid to see any items without
346 Check for any items with @code{label:patch}. If it's been more
347 than a week since the last action on the issue, send an email to
348 -devel to remind them about it. If the patch was withdrawn for
349 more work, then remove the @code{patch} label.
352 @uref{http://code.google.com/p/lilypond/issues/list?can=2&q=label:patch}
358 @subheading Irregular maintenance
360 @warning{These tasks are a lot of work; gathering more volunteers
361 to help is definitely recommended. However, the Bug Squad should
362 handle the organization and training of new volunteers.}
364 Once every year or two:
369 Checking all regtests: although we have a system for checking the
370 regtests between two versions, occasionally a bug will slip
371 through the cracks. It is therefore good to manually examine all
372 the regtests (compare the images to the text description). More
373 information is available from in @ref{Regression tests}.
377 Checking all issues: we try to mark each Issue @q{fixed} when we
378 fix it, but occasionally one or two issues will slip through the
379 cracks. It is therefore good to check all Issues. If you see the
380 same (broken) output as the initial report, then simply post a
381 @qq{Problem still exists in 2.x.y} message to the issue.
388 @node Issue classification
389 @section Issue classification
391 The Bug Squad should classify issues according to the guidelines
392 given by developers. Every issue should have a Status, Type, and
393 Priority; the other fields are optional.
395 @subheading Status (mandatory)
402 New: the item was added by a non-member, despite numerous warnings
403 not to do this. Should be reviewed by a member of the Bug Squad.
406 Accepted: the Bug Squad added it, or reviewed the item.
409 Started: a contributor is working on a fix. Owner should change
410 to be this contributor.
420 Invalid: issue should not have been added in the current state.
423 Duplicate: issue already exists in the tracker.
426 Fixed: a contributor claims to have fixed the bug. The Bug
427 Squad should check the fix with the next official binary release
428 (not by compiling the source from git). Owner should be set to
432 Verified: Bug Squad has confirmed that the issue is closed. This
433 means that nobody should ever need look at the report again -- if
434 there is any information in the issue that should be kept, open a
435 new issue for that info.
440 @subheading Owner (optional)
442 Newly-added issues should have @emph{no owner}. When a
443 contributor indicates that he has Started or Fixed an item, he
444 should become the owner.
447 @subheading Type (mandatory)
449 The issue's Type should be the first relevant item in this list.
454 Type-Collision: overlapping notation.
457 Type-Defect: a problem in the core program. (the @code{lilypond}
458 binary, scm files, fonts, etc).
461 Type-Documentation: inaccurate, missing, confusing, or desired
462 additional info. Must be fixable by editing a texinfo, ly, or scm
466 Type-Build: problem or desired features in the build system. This
467 includes the makefiles, stepmake, python scripts, and GUB.
470 Type-Scripts: problem or desired feature in the non-build-system
471 scripts. Mostly used for convert-ly, lilypond-book, etc.
473 Type-Enhancement: a feature request for the core program. The
474 distinction between enhancement and defect isn't extremely clear;
475 when in doubt, mark it as enhancement.
478 Type-Other: anything else.
483 @subheading Priority (mandatory)
485 Currently, only Critical items will block a stable release.
490 Priority-Critical: lilypond segfaults, or a regression occurred
491 within the last two stable versions. (i.e. when developing 2.13,
492 any regression against 2.12 or 2.10 counts)
495 Priority-High: highly embarrassing items, and any regression
496 against a version earlier than two stable versions (i.e. when
497 developing 2.13, any regression against 2.8 or earlier). This
498 level is also used for issues which produce no output and fail to
499 give the user a clue about what's wrong.
502 Priority-Medium: normal priority.
505 Priority-Low: less important than normal.
508 Priority-Postponed: no fix planned. Generally used for things
509 like Ancient notation, which nobody wants to touch.
513 The difference between Priority-Medium and Priority-Low is not
514 well-defined, both in this policy and in practice. The only
515 answer we can give at the moment is @qq{look at existing items in
516 of the same type, and try to guess whether the priority is closer
517 to the Medium items or Low items}. We're aware of the ambiguity,
518 and won't complain if somebody picks a @q{wrong} value for
522 @subheading Opsys (optional)
524 Issues that only affect specific operating systems.
527 @subheading Other items (optional)
534 Regression: it used to @strong{deliberately} work in an earlier
535 stable release. If the earlier output was accidental (i.e. we
536 didn't try to stop a collision, but it just so happened that two
537 grobs didn't collide), then breaking it does not count as a
541 Patch: a patch to fix an issue is attached.
544 Frog: the fix is believed to be suitable for a new contributor
545 (does not require a great deal of knowledge about LilyPond). The
546 issue should also have an estimated time in a comment.
549 Maintainability: hinders development of LilyPond. For example,
550 improvements to the build system, or @qq{helper} python scripts.
553 Bounty: somebody is willing to pay for the fix. Only add this tag
554 if somebody has offered an exact figure in US dollars or euros.
557 Warning: graphical output is fine, but lilypond prints a
558 false/misleading warning message. Alternately, a warning should
559 be printed (such as a bar line error), but was not. Also applies
560 to warnings when compiling the source code or generating
564 Security: might potentially be used.
567 Performance: might potentially be used.
571 If you particularly want to add an label not in the list, go
572 ahead, but this is not recommended.
575 @node Adding issues to the tracker
576 @section Adding issues to the tracker
578 @warning{This should only be done by the Bug Squad or experienced
579 developers. Normal users should not do this; instead, they should
580 follow the guidelines for @rweb{Bug reports}.}
582 In order to assign labels to issues, Bug Squad members should log
583 in to their google account before adding an item.
585 @subsubheading Normal issues
590 Check if the issue falls into any previous category given on the
591 relevant checklists in @ref{Bug Squad checklists}. If in doubt,
592 add a new issue for a report. We would prefer to have some
593 incorrectly-added issues rather than lose information that should
597 Add the issue and classify it according to the guidelines in
598 @ref{Issue classification}. In particular, the item should have
599 @code{Status}, @code{Type-}, and @code{Priority-} labels.
601 Include output with the first applicable method:
606 If the issue has a notation example which fits in one system,
607 generate a small @file{bug@/.preview@/.png} file with:
610 lilypond -dpreview bug.ly
614 If the issue has an example which requires more than one system
615 (i.e. a spacing bug), generate a @file{bug@/.png} file with:
618 lilypond --png bug.ly
622 If the issue requires multi-page output, then generate a
623 @file{bug@/.pdf} file with the normal:
626 lilypond --png bug.ly
632 After adding the issue, please send a response email to the same
633 group(s) that the initial patch was sent to. If the initial email
634 was sent to multiple mailing lists (such as both @code{user} and
635 @code{bugs}), then reply to all those mailing lists as well. The
636 email should contain a link to the issue you just added.
641 @subsubheading Patch reminders
643 @warning{This is not a Bug Squad responsibility; we have a
644 separate person handling this task.}
646 There is a special category of issues: reminders of an existing
647 patch. These should be added if a patch has been sent to a
648 lilypond mailing list (generally @code{lilypond-devel}, but they
649 sometimes appear on @code{bug-lilypond} as well) and has had no
650 discussion for at least @strong{3 days}. Do not add issues for
651 patches under active discussion.
653 Before adding a patch-reminder issue, do a quick check to see if
654 it was pushed without sending any email. This can be checked for
655 searching for relevant terms (from the patch subject or commit
656 message) on the webgit page:
659 @uref{http://git.savannah.gnu.org/gitweb/?p=lilypond.git}
662 After adding the issue, please send a response email to the same
663 group(s) that the initial patch was sent to. If the initial email
664 was sent to multiple mailing lists (such as both @code{bugs} and
665 @code{devel}), then reply to all those mailing lists as well. The
666 email should contain a link to the issue you just added.
670 @node Summary of project status
671 @section Summary of project status
673 The best overview of our current status is given by the grid view:
676 @uref{http://code.google.com/p/lilypond/issues/list?mode=grid&y=Priority&x=Type&cells=ids}
679 Also of interest might be the issues hindering future development:
682 @uref{http://code.google.com/p/lilypond/issues/list?can=2&q=label:Maintainability&mode=grid&y=Priority&x=Type&cells=ids}
685 Finally, issues tagged with @code{Frog} indicates a task suitable
686 for a relatively new contributor. The time given is a quick
687 (inaccurate) estimate of the time required for somebody who is
688 familiar with material in this manual, but does not know anything
689 else about LilyPond development.
692 @uref{http://code.google.com/p/lilypond/issues/list?can=2&q=label:Frog&mode=grid&y=Priority&x=Type&cells=ids}
696 @node Finding the cause of a regression
697 @section Finding the cause of a regression
699 @warning{This is not a @qq{simple} task; it requires a fair amount
700 of technical knowledge.}
702 Git has special functionality to help tracking down the exact
703 commit which causes a problem. See the git manual page for
704 @code{git bisect}. This is a job that non-programmers can do,
705 although it requires familiarity with git, ability to compile
706 LilyPond, and generally a fair amount of technical knowledge. An
707 in-depth explanation of this process will not be given here.
709 Even if you are not familiar with git or are not able to compile
710 LilyPond you can still help to narrow down the cause of a
711 regression simply by downloading the binary releases of different
712 LilyPond versions and testing them for the regression. Knowing
713 which version of LilyPond first exhibited the regression is
714 helpful to a developer as it shortens the @code{git bisect}
715 procedure described above.
717 Once a problematic commit is identified, the programmers' job is
718 much easier. In fact, for most regression bugs, the majority of
719 the time is spent simply finding the problematic commit.
721 More information is in @ref{Regression tests}.