On 05/05/2011 07:50 AM, Colin Clark wrote: > Hi > Perhaps I could make some comments here not as a developer, but as a user. >> 1) It's probably a good idea for us to start documenting the functions >> we write and the APIs we create. For one, it's a reminder to think >> about what specific problems the function/API is solving. Beyond that, >> it helps someone unfamiliar with the code figure out what's going on, >> and it helps them avoid misusing a particular function. > What I find missing is high-level documentation, not low-level. An > overall description of the way the system is organised and how the main > functions and structures should be used. But in my experience, > programmers won't produce documentation even when they are being paid to > do it, and no-one is being paid to work on Geeqie. Being realistic, I > don't think it is reasonable to expect people to do this. I agree that high-level documentation is missing; this is what Klaus also mentioned at the end of his email. I specifically mentioned function-level documentation because the pieces are easy, and as we gradually get more coverage, writing a higher-level document becomes that much easier.
>> 2) We need to have a maximum line length. It can be long, sure, but >> it's pretty obscene when there are lines so long that they wrap on my >> 26" widescreen monitor (layout_util.c is a pretty bad offender). I'm >> going to suggest 160 characters; see * below. >> > Line length was important to me when I used 72-character terminals > nearly half a century ago. Now I use a visual editor with line-wrap > enabled. No matter what size window I use, the code is readable. I find it visually disconcerting when text wraps automatically at what is typically some arbitrary point in the line. I think it would be more readable if the breaks were made intentionally rather than incidentally. > But I do find it very surprising that Geeqie has a non-standard coding > format. Layout consistency could be achieved if the developers selected > a standard format - maybe Allman or Whitesmith - and run all code > through a code beautifier before putting it in the repository. Time > spent on code formatting by hand is not a good use of time and will > result in inconsistencies. I'm not a fan of auto-formatters because they typically make it hard to deviate from the standard, _even in situations where the deviation would make code that is more readable_. > > > May I also make a plea for the common user, people like me who can just > about do a configure/make. > > Would it be possible for source tars (or even .deb files) of the latest > files to be put on the Geeqie homepage on sourceforge? Is it possible > for this do be done automatically whenever one of the git repositories > is updated? Not to dismiss your plea, but please remember that Geeqie is a project whose development was essentially stalled for a year and a half, and is only now just starting to get back up to speed. Those things will undoubtedly come in time, but now is certainly not the time for people to overcommit again. We can probably wait for any sort of automated stuff until we average more than one commit to master per month. > I would also encourage the developers to try to make Geeqie at least as > good as GQview. There are two problems where I find GQview is > significantly better than Geeqie: At this point, I think it's most important for devs to work on whatever the heck they want; something (anything) is better than nothing. Later on down the line, we can probably start making a more concerted effort to fix the bugs that have been reported and add useful features, but at this point, I think the key first step is for people to get back in the habit of spending time working on geeqie, and coming up with changes that end up in master. --xsdg ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ WhatsUp Gold - Download Free Network Management Software The most intuitive, comprehensive, and cost-effective network management toolset available today. Delivers lowest initial acquisition cost and overall TCO of any competing solution. http://p.sf.net/sfu/whatsupgold-sd _______________________________________________ Geeqie-devel mailing list Geeqie-devel@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/geeqie-devel
