Re: Merging the purge-python2-packages branch

[Maxime Devos]

zimoun schreef op do 02-06-2022 om 09:25 [+0200]:
> On Wed, 01 Jun 2022 at 22:30, Maxime Devos <maximedevos@telenet.be> wrote:
> 
> > > (from [0])
> > > Sunsetting Python 2
> > > [...]
> > > We did not want to hurt the people using Python 2. So, in 2008, we
> > > announced that we would sunset Python 2 in 2015,
> > 
> > This is a 5 year grace period, which is already a lot of weeks.
> > Futhermore, this has even been extended for five additional years:
> 
> Following this argument, the question is therefore: why Python 2
> packages had been included in Guix in the first place since most
> inclusions had already been post this grace period? :-)

I didn't know that.  I guess we should have said back then ‘no adding
new python2 packages because of the grace period, only updates’ and
announced and documented the policy? (assuming this argument)

> I personally do not follow all the upstream code that I run.  I trust
> the distro for that.  I guess most people follow distro news for most
> of the things they basically run and install from their disto. [...]
> By doing sudden transition, we appear abrupt as a distro and the
> message between the lines is «Guix is not reliable as a distro».  All
> such big transition is difficult whatever the distro [1,2,3].  The
> aim of a distro is to smooth user transition, IMHO, which means
> communicate explicitly for preparing.

I agree that it is a sudden transition for a user that does not follow
upstream news and that it only is a smooth transition for people in the
know.  It's a bit a matter of perspective I guess?  Agreed with more
explicit communication.  And maybe Guix could have done more, e.g. by
helping upstream with porting to python3.

Greetings,
Maxime.

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