Maximize Software Distribution

HOWTO Maximize Software Distribution

Please see Sofware Release Procedure

Getting Included in Various Distros

NOTE: Distros is short for distributions and generally refers to Linux/Open Source Distributions

Which distros

Gentoo

• File a bug on http://bugs.gentoo.org
• Making an ebuild really helps push the process along

Fedora Core

• Help us by adding your knowledge here :)

Debian

• Help us by adding your knowledge here :)

Ubuntu

• Bug filing: https://launchpad.net/distros/ubuntu/+bugs
• Discussion with MOTU (Masters Of The Universe) teams: https://wiki.ubuntu.com/MOTU/Teams

SUSE

• Help us by adding your knowledge here :)

HOWTO Build Standard Open Source Packaging

The standard parts of software formatted for Open Source standards are:

There is good help for how to do the following files on GNU's documentation site.

/ (package root)
   AUTHORS (names of authors, one per line)
   COPYING (license copied into a text document)
   ChangeLog (standard formatted changes, use tabs and not spaces)
   VERSION (version number of the release only...no - or _)
   NEWS (general release notes and announcement for a release)
   PRESS (press release formatted as text file)
   README (main entry point for a project and many times includes INSTALL instructions)
   INSTALL (optional, how to install some software)
   Makefile (optional, used to construct the software, automate builds, packaging, etc)
   autogen.sh (optional, used in setups with Automake)
   YOURAPPNAME.1 (optional, MAN page: replace YOURAPPNAME with your applications name for this MAN page)
   doc/ (optional, where documentation goes if there is any)
   bin/ (optional, where scripts go that operate on the package/software)
   www/ (optional, optional place for files/folders that are to be visible on the web)
   src/ (where code goes for a project)

Writing Announcements and Press Releases

There is a full on tutorial session here.

Announcements

1. format more for community
2. first person (I, we, etc) are good
3. keep short
4. format for 80 character width email
5. add contact information
6. plain text (no html)
7. minimum of 2-3 paragraphs

Press Releases

1. Keep in third person
2. narrativize the release/announcement more formally
3. format in high quality format and also 80 character width email
4. add press contact
5. no html
6. minimum of 3 paragraphs

Building a Developer Community (simple)

The simplest ways to build an online developer community is to:

Concept

1. Remeber KISS: Keep It Simple (Make one solid goal for the project)
2. Pick a solid simple name that can be simplified to a one word tag.
3. Use this tag/simple name for the domain name, etc for the project. It is your common branding.

Infrastructure

1. install a wiki
2. form a chat channel on irc.freenode.net
3. setup a mailing list.

Social

1. help edit recent wiki edits
2. answer all relevant emails
3. stay in chat channel and answer questions