Re: [PATCH] Broaden download options in contrib/download_prerequisites

[Janne Blomqvist <blomqvist dot janne at gmail dot com>]

On Wed, Sep 28, 2016 at 10:47 PM, Steve Kargl
<sgk@troutmask.apl.washington.edu> wrote:
> On Wed, Sep 28, 2016 at 12:26:15PM -0700, Damian Rouson wrote:
>>
>> All,
>>
>> The attached patch for the contrib/download_prerequisites script
>> is my first ever submission so please be gentle. :) Please let me
>> know if this is the right list to review it or if I need to submit
>> it to another list. I signed the necessary paperwork for contributing
>> to GCC a couple of years ago.
>>
>
> Damian,
>
> Normally, patches that are concerned with fortran are posted
> to both fortran@gcc.gnu.org and patches@gcc.gnu.org.  Your
> patch falls into a strange category.  Eventhough it concerns
> Fortran, it changes parts of the GCC infrastructure and requires
> someone other than a gfortan maintainer to approve.  I suggest
> that you repost to start a new thread that includes patches@
> from the top.

That would be gcc-patches@gcc.gnu.org, not patches@gcc.gnu.org.

This patch per se has nothing to do with the Fortran frontend, so in
that sense mailing the patch to fortran@gcc.gnu.org isn't necessary,
though I'm sure we won't mind it either since it indirectly touches
Fortran. I'm not really sure who is supposed to review patches to
download_prerequisites, maybe the build system maintainers (of course,
global reviewer can approve anything)? FWIW, the list is at
https://gcc.gnu.org/git/?p=gcc.git;a=blob;f=MAINTAINERS;hb=HEAD,
though you're not supposed to mail them directly (unless, I guess,
your patch goes unreviewed for a long time, which unfortunately
happens more than it should...)

While I can't approve it myself, based on a brief look it looks Ok.
One little note, you need to provide a GNU-style ChangeLog entry too
(which is silly and redundant in the age of git, but that's the
rule...). You can check out the format by looking at any of the
ChangeLog files in the gcc tree. Don't make that part of the patch,
since there is so much churn in the ChangeLog files that there will
inevitably be a merge conflict when you apply the patch. Just
copy-paste it at the end of your mail, and then you apply it to the
ChangeLog file just before committing when/if your patch is approved.
Also, I think it's considered good practice that the ChangeLog entry
is also included in the commit message (though I personally also put a
short one-line heading so that "git log --oneline" and such look
sensible).

Also, before you implement adding the OpenCoarrays patch, I suggest
that you discuss it at the main gcc development list
(gcc@gcc.gnu.org). I fear you might run into some opposition there.

-- 
Janne Blomqvist