Volunteer Plugin Testers Needed!!

[rgleason]

We really need a team of "Volunteer Plugin Testers" using all the different OS systems. Our primary and most basic need is for "Basic Testing", does it crash OpenCPN, does it open and close properly, are the menus working. This would be needed at several points before each release of OpenCPN and at times during the plugin development process.

Please indicate your interest here or under Issues here

https://github.com/OpenCPN/plugins/issues/660

We would like to have one tester for every OS.

[rgleason]

Since we have had no serious and committed Plugin Testers sign up, I have decided that I must implement a strict policy for the many plugins that I maintain.

Going forward I will only push to the OpenCPN/plugins master catalog, fully tested OS versions for these plugins.

This testing will be done by Volunteer Operating System Testers who have signed up and committed to make sure all the plugins (that I maintain) for that OS version, actually work. I will request each tester to sign off on every plugin before it is pushed to the master catalog.

The consequence of this is that if there is no Tester for a given OS, there will be no plugins. Sorry, but that is the only way I can see this process working at this point.


So if you have a favorite OS for Opencpn, you'd better sign up as a Tester.

[rgleason]

"We would like to have one tester for every OS."

• However in practice it would be much preferable to have two testers because the notice will be short, and the confirmation will need to be fairly quick.

..and if this request is ignored, and nobody wants to volunteer, then I know that nobody using that OS really cares if Sean's plugins are maintained.

[SCarns]

I’m on Mac OS Catalina. I run a bunch of plug ins. How can I help?

Steve

[ParL]

Android and Ubuntu in Sweden.

[sailingjazz]

I am running on Win 10 and Android. I can test. Sorry couldn't figure out how to register via Github.

Kevin

[rgleason]

Originally Posted by SCarns

I’m on Mac OS Catalina. I run a bunch of plug ins. How can I help?

Steve

Steve, thank you. Also all of you who have signed up. The problem is that we will release a new version of the Testplugin Template or even ShipDriver Template, then try building all the OS metadata and tarballs for one of the plugins and simply hope that all the OS work, because we do not have the means or equipment to test them all.

Then it gets worse, we think they are working, and build all the rest of the plugins using the new template. Then the reports dribble in, first Flatpak arm64 is failing. So we fix that and rebuild all the plugins. Then we find out another OS build is failing. What are we going to do, rebuild all the plugins again? No. We are going to remove all the plugins for that OS.

Then we are going to develop reliable testing program. Taking it one step at a time.

When Jon releases a new Testplugin Template he pushes the commit to testplugin_pi and increments the version. https://github.com/jongough/testplug...commits/master

When he pushes the commit that starts a Circleci build process which should create all the necessary metadata and tarballs for all the currently supported OS which are deployed to Cloudsmith and stored there in

https://cloudsmith.io/~opencpn/repos...prod/packages/ and sometimes in the testplugin-beta repository. He may even add the results to the Plugin Manager "beta" catalog.

When this is done, the first thing we need is for all testers to download their OS version of the testplugin tarball and use the Options > Plugins > "Import Plugin" feature (or use the beta catalog) to test the installation, enabling, preferences, menus and general operation of the plugin making sure OpenCPN does not crash, in a reasonably timely manner.

Once we are reasonably certain that the new template is working for all OS, I will, over a period of weeks, update all of Sean's plugins, plus some others, pushing them to github and deploying to Cloudsmith. Each plugin will then be added to the Plugin Manager "Beta" catalog for testing by all the OS Testers. We will want you all to test the results on your OS and report back in a timely fashion.

Then the plugins will be added to the PIM master catalog.

Thus we will avoid needless extra and repetitive work. If there are any ideas or suggestions to improve this process please write below. Thanks.

I do hope others will commit to this testing process.

Thank you Steve and the others who have signed up.

[rgleason]

Originally Posted by ParL

Android and Ubuntu in Sweden.

ParL that is great, which versions of Android and Ubuntu please?


android arm64
android armhf
armhf stretch
armhf ubuntu buster
armhf debian buster
armhf debian bullseye
armhf ubuntu focal
bionic gtk3
bionic
focal gtk3
buster


Also you could be using one of these flatpak builds

flatpak arm64
flatpak x86 2008
flatpak x86 2008 beta
flatpak x86 1808

[rgleason]

Originally Posted by sailingjazz

I am running on Win 10 and Android. I can test. Sorry couldn't figure out how to register via Github.

Kevin

Kevin, thank you
Which version of Android are you using?
android arm64
android armhf


Kevin, you should be able to register with github as Opensource
https://github.com/open-source you can use OpenCPN as the organization if one is needed.

[rgleason]

I've added a Discussion to OpenCPN about Volunteer Plugin Testing
https://github.com/OpenCPN/OpenCPN/discussions/2616

Your helpful thoughts/ideas would be appreciated.


Incidently, the list of plugins for the TestPlugin Template is here
https://github.com/jongough/testplugin_pi/issues/177


There is also a healthy list of ShipDriver Template plugins.

[sailingjazz]

My phone is arm64. I also have a Chromebook if we to test that. I already have a github user (sailingjazz)

Kevin

[rgleason]

If you all want to have plugins next cycle, users had better register here to be plugin testers. We need your OS and name to start, respond here.

Thanks Kevin.

[ParL]

Originally Posted by rgleason

ParL that is great, which versions of Android and Ubuntu please?

Lapdog:
$ cat /etc/os-release
NAME="Ubuntu"
VERSION="20.04.4 LTS (Focal Fossa)"
ID=ubuntu
ID_LIKE=debian
PRETTY_NAME="Ubuntu 20.04.4 LTS"
VERSION_ID="20.04"



The smartphone is Android 8.1.0

[amajori]

Ok
I use MacOS Monterey version 12.3.1
In your classification macos wx315 ( I believe)

Antonio

[rgleason]

This is going to be very easy and quick to build for PIM, because these are the only OS Builds that have volunteer Plugin Testers. We will NOT be building or deploying anything else. The list of plugins affected is TP Plugin List (about 16 plugins).

If you are using some weird infrequently used OS, you'd better sign up to help test these plugins, or you can be selfish and simply compile them for yourself (if you are able).

List of OS with Volunteers (to date)

1. Windows 10 sailingjazz Kevin
2. Windows 10 rgleason Rick
3. MacOS Catalina (macos ) Scarns Steve
4. MacOS Monterey version 12.3.1 macos wx315 Amajori Antonio
5. Ubuntu 20.04.4 LTS (Focal Fossa) (armhf ubuntu focal) ParL
6. Android ??? ParL
7. Android arm64 sailingjazz Kevin

That's all.