Yet another monthly platform email

[Adam Jackson]

First mail wearing something resembling a release manager hat.  This should be 
interesting.

So, two things.  When platform, and what platform.  They kind of overlap.

The impression I got at xdevconf was that smaller is better.  The impression I 
get from the archives is that the platform should define those pieces which 
are baked and stable.  However, I also got from xdc that the package set 
under consideration for the platform is: fontconfig, gstreamer, dbus, hal, 
cairo, maybe pkgconfig.

Cairo worries me.  If we're explicitly not using the platform for technology 
pimping, then I have trouble reconciling the ideas of "this is stable baked 
technology" and "this includes Cairo".  I understand that Cairo has existed 
in various forms for some time and has some interesting apps already, but 
it's currently going through major API changes, it is not adopted by toolkits 
now, and its 1.0 as I understand it is being timed to coincide with Gnome 
2.12 this summer.  To me this doesn't sound like baked software.

fontconfig and pkgconfig I can accept.  The other three I don't know a lot 
about and would appreciate some input on.  Likewise for specs I'm not 
particularly informed which ones are good.

So, toolkit people: come up with a list of software and specs that:
- you depend on for interop
- you can deal with supporting until at least the next major revision of your
  desktop
- you anticipate being baked by (say) June

I expect the specs list to be much longer than the software list here.

Pimping happens on its own.  No worries there.  Cool stuff will get used.  The 
need for a platform is the need for a stable base above X but below the 
toolkit.  So let's make one, a small one probably, and start moving forward.

- ajax
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