This is the home of the Debian Collaboration Team.

The DCT team now has a mailing list. subscribe or read the archives.

For the DCT proposal, read DCT/Proposal.

Current Status

Starting to re-draft most of the current documentation on both Ubuntu's and Debian's side. - MartinAlbisetti beuno@ubuntu.com

Note: it seems the most current documentation on this topic may now be found under Debian - Yung-Chin Oei

What is the DCT ?

The Debian Collaboration Team (or DCT) is an Ubuntu team aiming at improving collaboration between Ubuntu and Debian by tracking changes in Ubuntu's packages.

From the Debian maintainer point of view

If you are a Debian maintainer, you can ask the DCT to monitor your packages. The DCT will then file bugs in the Debian BTS about your packages for all relevant issues. On the other hand, you agree to act promptly regarding those bugs :

• Reply to them within days (not weeks)
• Close them by uploading a new version within weeks (not months), when applicable

Note that you don't have to accept all changes proposed by the DCT, but it means that you have to explain in the BTS why you think that a specific change isn't of interest to Debian.

This will allow for efficient collaboration between Ubuntu and Debian.

From the Ubuntu developer point of view

You can help the DCT in two ways:

• Join it and help to take care of those packages.

• Provide better (more verbose) changelog entries, thus simplifying the work of reviewing the changes you make, and ping a DCT member when you make changes relevant to Debian.

What about other packages ?

For packages which aren't monitored by the DCT:

• Patches are available from http://patches.ubuntu.com/ , and Ubuntu developers file bugs in the Debian BTS on a volunteer basis.

• If the team has spare resources while already keeping up with monitored packages, some members may choose other diverged packages to work on.

Members

How do I join ?

• There's no restriction on who can join (you don't need to be a MOTU), a Debian developer, or even an Ubuntu member).

• Just join the Mailing List (it's moderated).

Divergence explanation

This section lists common reasons for divergence, allowing the Debian Developers to understand better why such choices were made in Ubuntu.

• DCT/DesktopFiles

Links

• DCT/FormLetters : examples of mails

• DCT Launchpad Team

• Debian Mentoring FAQ to find out how to get your package included in Debian.

TODO List

• Recruit some Ubuntu developers (DCT is a nice idea, but we won't do anything without manpower)

• Improve our tools

• Actually start working

Current status of all this stuff

• There's currently not much going on. While I (Lucas Nussbaum) still think it's a good idea, I don't have enough time to work on all this alone, obviously. I plan to dedicate some time to work on this very soon now (next weeks/month).

• We shouldn't start working on this before we have a clear workflow and the tools that will allow us to work efficiently.

madduck: Sure, I don't want to pressure you, but generally I have bad experience with holding off work until tools and workflow have been defined; they never will be defined in a way that people want to work, unless they have been modelled based on the work done by people.

Also, if you do not have time to work on this, maybe someone else does? Maybe Canonical will feel inclined to dedicate some resources?

FWIW: http://blog.madduck.net/debian/2006.05.24-ubuntu-and-debian

Relevant Links

http://keithcu.com/wordpress/?p=27

"Test" Debian maintainers

• Hamish Moffatt <hamish at debian dot org>

• martin f. krafft <madduck at debian dot org>

• michael ablassmeier <abi at debian dot org>

• Thomas Viehmann <tv at beamnet dot org>

• Adriaan Peeters <apeeters at lashout dot net>

• Max Vozeler <xam at debian dot org>

• Franz Pletz <fpletz at franz-pletz dot org>

• Stefano Zacchiroli <zack at debian dot org>

• Raphael Hertzog <hertzog at debian dot org>

• Maxence Dunnewind <maxenced at ubuntu dot com>