[Buildbot-devel] Comments on the 'nine' project

[Jason Edgecombe]

Hi guys,

I'm new participant of the buildbot community. I wanted to offer some 
feedback on 'nine':

As I understand the dependencies for nine are the following:
* python and various modules
* some DB (sqlite, mysql, postgres or other)
* java
* node.js?

Optional dependencies may include:
* AMQP

May I ask why all of these dependencies are needed?

As Linux admin, this list of dependencies raises some red flags. 
Dependencies make my job harder. Merging multiple languages causes 
integration headaches and puts the admin in "dependency hell". Using two 
different languages is annoying, but not too alarming, but adding a 
third language raises a major red flag in my opinion. In other words, 
python+java is OK and python+node.js is OK, but python+node.js+java 
seems like overkill. This seems like a desire to use the latest 
buzzword-compliant software.

If I were to evaluate 'nine' for work, then I would likely stick with 
0.8 or look for an alternative with fewer dependencies. I found out that 
Debian Squeeze doesn't have packages for node.js. As an admin, I like to 
stick with OS-provided packages. This might not be an issue when nine is 
finally released, because node.js has packages in Debian Sid, but it 
does make things more difficult.

As for AMQP, I would rather see someone use a standard solution, like 
AMQP, than re-invent the wheel, so AMQP doesn't bug me, so long as I 
don't need a dedicated AMQP server just for buildbot.

This is my opinion as a sysadmin, and I've been known to be a drive-by 
contributor who jumps between open source projects.

Thanks,
Jason