Launchpad itself

package owners and LP Answers

Asked by Fernando Miguel

If a user opens a bug ticket, the package owners will be automatically subscribed to that ticket.

But if s/he opens an Answer (actually a Question) the owner or Team wont be automatically subscribed to that Answer.

In the case of Ubuntu, only those users who subscribe to the Answers mailinglist will get it, even if the package is indicated, loosing the chance of getting those who better know the package from help.

I propose (after public discussion and with optional selection) that Answers automatically emails the team owner or maintainer of a package.

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Henning Eggers
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Henning Eggers (henninge) said : 		#1

Two things to consider:

1. Answering user questions and fixing bugs does require different skills. Agreed, the developers could answer user questions as well (and they can, if they subscribe to it) but they are often also busy fixing bugs. An answer can be made into a bug if it turns out to be a problem with the software and this way the developers will get informed. The idea of answers is to offload user support to other users of the software which do not need to have software development skills themselves. Your suggestion would defeat that purpose.

2. Answers also provides a chance to have your question answered in your own language if a user speaks your language. It is not sensible to have the package develeoper(s) as a default subscriber for all question since s/he might not speak that language. So your suggestion would only help those that speak the same language as the package developer.

Hope that helps.

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Fernando Miguel (fernandomiguel) said : 		#2

> 1. Answering user questions and fixing bugs does require different
> skills. Agreed, the developers could answer user questions as well (and
> they can, if they subscribe to it) but they are often also busy fixing bugs.

Then I guess there should be more information to DEVs (even those that are not Ubuntu project, but still hosted on LP) about the need to subscribe to the Answers lists.
This very question took 5 days to get your answer and only after I bugged ppl about in on LP-users ML.

> Hope that helps.

Yes it does.

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Best Henning Eggers (henninge) said : 		#3

But don't you think that developers that work with LP are aware of the answers service?

I think it might be enough to provide the project maintainers with statistics on answers (open/solved/expired) so they can react if too many questions remain open or even expire.

BTW, did you consider you question as still open or as solved? Having said that, I don't think that answers is the right place to discuss features. You already contacted the mailing list and maybe you should try to discuss this there.

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Fernando Miguel (fernandomiguel) said : 		#4

Thanks Henning Eggers, that solved my question.