[proposal] linux-modules-* for etchnhalf

[dann frazier]

[Reply-To set to etchnhalf list to try and minimize crosspost noise.]

hey,
 I'm e-mailing you because you are the maintainer of a module that
maybe a candidate for etchnhalf's linux-modules-* packages. Please
read through this message and let us know if you believe your module
should get included.

Since l-m-e is a blocking has been a blocker for the release for a
while, I did an investigation into a process for doing out-of-tree
modules for etchnhalf. As mentioned previously[1], it must be done in
a way that doesn't change what anything for the etch user. For
example, we can't fully update module source to newer versions that
happen to be compatible w/ 2.6.24 or otherwise change how 2.6.18 users
rebuild their modules.

The method I like best so far is:
 * Create new source packages that provide source/binary packages
   specifically for etchnhalf (e.g., foo-source-etchnhalf).
 * Install module source into a separate directory, e.g.,
   /usr/src/etchnhalf. This requires setting MOD_SRCDIR for
   module-assistant to find the source (this process should get
   documented in README.Debian)

I've tested this w/ a number of packages, and it seems to
work well - comments and other ideas (quickly) are welcome.

The next question is, which modules should be included? Here's the
criteria that seems reasonable to me:

 * module either adds new hardware support for etch, or achieves
   feature parity with the etch 2.6.18 kernel. etchnhalf is
   specifically targeted at adding hardware support, so adding things
   like new filesystems would be out-of-scope.
 * module must not be rc-buggy (obviously)
 * l-m-* in testing includes this module
 * module has been tested in etch w/ etchnhalf kernel (i.e.,
   compatible with etch userspace)
 * Available _quickly_ :) etchnhalf is scheduld to release with r4
   which is intended to release on 2008.07.25, so I'd like to see if
   we can get all suitable packages **uploaded by Sunday, 07.20.**

The shortlist of modules that I came up with that may meet these
requirements follow - let me know if I've missed any:
 atl2
 gspca
 squashfs
 unionfs
 r6040
 rt73 (contrib, would also need firmware package)
 kqemu (compatible w/ etch userspace?)
 redhat-cluster (compatible w/ redhat-cluster userspace in etch?)

I've created some proof-of-concept patches for some of these
at[2].

Also note that if a module doesn't make etchnhalf, it still maybe
possible to get it included within a future point release.

[1] http://teams.debian.net/lurker/message/20080617.120450.de4ac383.en.html
[2] http://people.debian.org/~dannf/etchnhalf-oot/

-- 
dann frazier