Launchpad
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| Project management | |
| languages | English |
| operator | Canonical |
| On-line | January 2004 (currently active) |
| http://launchpad.net | |
| Launchpad
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| Basic data
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| Maintainer | Canonical |
| Publishing year | January 2004 |
| programming language | python |
| License | AGPL |
| https://launchpad.net/launchpad-project | |
Launchpad (Engl. For launch pad ) is a collection of free web applications and online services from Canonical to support software development projects. In particular, the development of free software is supported. Launchpad is mostly used to develop Ubuntu (a GNU / Linux distribution ), but other well-known free software such as Inkscape has already migrated to the system. Internally, the Zope web application server is built on and the Python programming language is used.
Modules
Launchpad consists of several parts: Projects , a possibility to register a program, also program collections and development teams in the Launchpad database, comparable to Freecode , a possibility for source code hosting called Code , a department Translations (Rosetta) for the translation of strings in software, bugs (Malone) a system for error management, the Blueprints module to discuss ideas and drafts, and Answers , a knowledge database where users can publicly ask the developers questions. The Soyuz subproject (Russian for “Union”), which manages software packages, mirrors and the build system for compiling the source code, also helps when putting together the Ubuntu distribution .
code
Launchpad Code enables software projects to store source code in a version control system. The module supports the Bazaar revision system, which was also developed by Canonical, but can import the well-known CVS and SVN systems. Every registered user can start a new branch , which the development team can take over into the project. With the Personal Package Archive (PPA), developers can offer unofficial dpkg package sources for Ubuntu in various processor architectures themselves .
Rosetta
Rosetta was named after the Rosette Stone and is a web application for software localization . In this way, several users can translate a program together directly via the web interface, similar to a wiki, without installing additional software or dealing with revision control software . The popular .po files (Portable Object) of the GNU gettext library are directly supported and other popular custom solutions, e.g. B. the Mozilla projects , converted with the help of scripts. Rosetta also offers translation memory for all of the phrases stored in the system and displays them to the translators.
Malone
Malone is a bug tracker as a tool for software distributions, but can also take on the function of a metabug tracker, links bug trackers from other projects and regularly queries their status. This should avoid redundant work and improve communication with the original projects ( upstream ) .
criticism
Launchpad was initially criticized by members of the open source community because, despite the stated goals of the Ubuntu project, it was not under a free software license. A complete disclosure of the source text was not initially planned, because the split-up project would result in the platform losing its position as the central pooling of all resources and there are still no open standards for a decentralized model. In addition, financial disadvantages were expected and it was pointed out that well-known projects such as SourceForge.net are also proprietary . In the long term, Launchpad could evolve from a central to a distributed system and be published entirely under a free license for web applications such as the GNU AGPL .
Canonical, however, already released individual components that may be useful for other projects, separately under a free license. On July 9, 2007, a program library for object-relational mapping was published. Employees at Canonical also regularly contribute to improving the software used in the background, such as Zope, Twisted, SQLObject and Bazaar .
For version 3.0 Canonical promised to reveal the source code of the core components of the development environment. On July 21, 2009, Launchpad was published completely as open source under the AGPL .
Web links
- Launchpad
- Wiki article on Launchpad at ubuntuusers.de
- Article about the Launchpad installation at Linux-Magazin Online
Individual evidence
- ↑ Inkscape moving to Launchpad! at Launchpad Blog
- ↑ Bug # 50699: Launchpad should be free software (free as in freedom)
- ^ Launchpad Frequently Asked Questions . Canonical. August 5, 2006. Retrieved January 8, 2011.
- ↑ Mark Shuttleworth in a contribution to the Gobuntu mailing list ( memento of the original from November 9, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. .
- ^ Canonical Releases Storm as Open Source . July 10, 2007. Archived from the original on November 26, 2007. Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved January 8, 2011.
- ↑ Launchpad Blog: Launchpad is now open source . Launchpad. July 21, 2009. Retrieved January 8, 2011.
