[GNU-linux-libre] DSFG in perpetuity

[bill-auger]

i have been assuming that the FSDG is intended to be ongoing
requirements and not only a guide for initial consideration; and that
the post-review adfeno and i did last summer may have been the first,
not because it was unwelcome, but only because no one had yet taken the
initiative to do it

that being said, if the FSDG is to be applied perpetually; that puts
several such issues on the table presently:

* BLAG does not exist - this triggers multiple criteria ("Complete
Distro", "Actively maintained") - not that i want to see it go away; but
i think there should be, at the very least, some communication with it's
former maintainers regarding any future plans - if no one takes on it's
stewardship soon, then maybe it should be retired to a "historical
mention" category

* no one associated with proteanos answers the mailing list or
participates in the distro's IRC channel; which still has a few
straggling users that have not seen the maintainer in many months
(perhaps a year now) - as with BLAG, i wrote to the mailing list asking
about its future and got no response - i do think "Actively maintained"
should be read to imply "answer your email" or "join you own IRC channel
once in a while"

* ututo completely uprooted their distro from a gentoo to a ubuntu base
- should the new release be subject to a fresh review? or grandfathered
in on good faith?

* pureos has a long-standing open request to remove chromium in
solidarity with the other FSDG distros - that issue is o/c a separate
can of worms; but i think all distros should be projecting a uniform
message, however vague the circumstance, until such controversies are
resolved - or *at the very least*, all distros affected by the
controversy should be participating in the discussions on this list

* then, the other can of worms regarding the debian kernel - if this is
what has been preventing connochaetos from being endorsed, then pureos
and any future candidates should be held to that same standard without
exception - again, at the very least, all distros affected by the
controversy should be expected to participate in the discussion on this list

admittedly, i have been kicking pureos a lot lately - mainly because i
have been hoping to see someone from pureos defend it - it seems quite
clear to me that no one from pureos is reading this list - i would
propose that one of the FSDG requirements should be for each distro to
elect a delegate to follow, if not actively participate in the
discussions on this list on behalf of the distro - and ideally, to stand
uniformly with the greater community in the grey areas of the FSDG such
as the current chromium issue and the debian kernel

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