bzr-windows team mailing list archive

[DeeJay <smartgpx@xxxxxxxxx>]

As my unsolicited contribution to the bzr-windows effort, I've
trawled through the material on the bzr web/wiki related to
installation on windows.

What follows is pitched in a 'hostile' mode to try to highlight
what a *potential* user of bzr on windows might encounter. Bottom
line I think is that someone who latches onto the 'standalone'
bzr.exe installer; has Admin rights on their PC to install it;
and can live without a free choice of plugins is probably going
to get bzr up and running easily. Otherwise they are going to
struggle and they might dismiss bzr because the road to installation
and use turned out to be rocky.

These observations might be useful in ensuring that the work being
done on the installer, and the website redesign, come together to
make adoption by windows users a straightforward operation. Certainly
the existing material cannot simply be re-wrapped in a new presentation
format - some attention to content will be required.

DJ

 ========================================

BZR documentation for Windows installation

as of 8th August 2009

Starting with the text content of http://bazaar-vcs.org/

try it out in five minutes. ->
http://doc.bazaar-vcs.org/latest/en/mini-tutorial/index.html

 Installation - Windows -> http://bazaar-vcs.org/WindowsDownloads

"Choose the most recent bzr-setup-*.exe from the download page "
The download page doesn't show dates - presumably the 'most recent' is
listed first?

"This is the installer for stand-alone bzr.exe with optional
TortoiseBzr and bzr-svn plugins."
If I have just encountered bazaar I don't have a clue what that means
or how significant it is to me!

"You can use most of the Bazaar plugins (  excluding some GUI plugins) "
Most, but not all, and it seems to be 'pot luck' as to what might work.
Loggerhead (web interface) isn't compatible. [bug reported]
'bzr shell' from bzrtools isn't compatible. [bug reported]
Compatibility with windows varies with method of installation, but this isn't
signalled on the plugins page. Pre-requisites for plugins need to be clearer.

"If you have Python 2.4/2.5 installed, and you want to install all
dependencies yourself, please use the Python-based installer linked to below. "

So if I know I've installed Py2.6 there's no point reading the next section.

Which is unfortunate because it says
"If you have Python 2.4/2.5/2.6 already installed... "

Python-based Installation

"You must install all dependencies libraries by yourself."
There are 2 hyperlinks here. The library versions they reference are different.


If that's all too confusing, we might go back to
http://doc.bazaar-vcs.org/latest/en/mini-tutorial/index.html
where the next link under Installation is labelled Installation pages and
takes us to -> http://bazaar-vcs.org/InstallationFaq

That says -
"There is also a bit of Windows specific install information available
on BzrOnPureWindows"

But http://bazaar-vcs.org/BzrOnPureWindows says, if you notice the
small font top line,
"WARNING: This page is out of date. Please see WindowsDownloads and
WindowsInstall instead."
Why leave out of date information lying around to confuse people?

Back to the http://bazaar-vcs.org/ home page.

Download Bazaar 1.17

Bazaar 1.17 was released on the 20th of July, 2009.

   * Release notes
   * Downloads and installation instructions -> http://bazaar-vcs.org/Download

http://bazaar-vcs.org/Download

 Windows installer - default 1.17 installer ->  bzr-setup-1.17-1.exe

why? isn't  bzr-setup-1.17-2.exe more recent?

try 'other options' instead -

The bzr*win23-py*.exe files have already been explained as python installers.

Sometimes there is a 'nonadmin' .exe installer, but no documentation of
what it contains or how to use it.

OK - look at instructions? That takes us to
 http://bazaar-vcs.org/WindowsDownloads
we've discussed that already

Nothing else apparently Windows related in the text content on the bzr
home page.


Using SEARCH on the bzr home page for Windows shows we've pretty much covered
what's there.

http://bazaar-vcs.org/WindowsInstall is scarily long for something that is
supposed to be easy!

it might be out of date (requires Py2.5) and is contradictory. [If Paramiko is
only available as source code, why is there a link to a binary?]

http://bazaar-vcs.org/BzrWin32Installer is no doubt useful for those who
need to create their own binary installers, but it's not what a beginner
whats to know.




 ===================================================================


Core bzr team 'mindset'
Perhaps the wiki material and ml discussions betray the fact that there
is no agreed position on Windows support? The following (exaggerated)
attitudes all seem to exist:

1) 'Batteries included' one-click install for Windows is a must-have.

2) that standalone.exe installer is a clever demonstration but it
papers over some cracks, and it will lay there like a heffalump trap,
waiting to catch us out. Better not encourage it.

3) bzr is written in python so people had better be running and know
some python to use it. anything else is a diversion.


[The recent discussions on bzr-windows suggest acceptance of option 1)
as being closest to reality, but is that an 'offical' position or just
something
that a bunch of enthusiasts are pushing?]