[developers] `lkb-bugs' email and LinGO GNATS installation

[Stephan Oepen]

dear all,

following a system upgrade (performed by CSLI staff), the GNATS problem
report system for the `lkb-bugs' address has periodically jammed email
over the past week or so.

i cannot quite see what goes wrong, but i felt it was high time to put
that system to rest anyway.  hence i just did the following:

  - change routing for `lkb-bugs at csli.stanford.edu' to feed straight to
    `lingo at lingo.stanford.edu' (where in the past this used to go into
    GNATS first, which in turn relayed to `lingo').

  - manually re-send pending GNATS messages from the past few days that
    were not spam.

besides our current technical issues with GNATS, the main problem with
the `lkb-bugs' mailing address is a very high incoming spam volume: we
had effectively given up on active use of the GNATS database, i think,
because the vast majority of entries are spam.  if we were to set up a
new ticket system (e.g. a DELPH-IN GNATS or Trac or the like), i think
we will need to put a human (and possibly automated too) filter between
incoming email and the PR database; or plain dis-allow email submission
and require people to file PRs on the web.

i have heard many nice things about Trac, but hesistated to install it
for DELPH-IN because it comes with its own wiki.  i am not too keen on
migrating to another (or a second) wiki, i think.  we use GNATS within
the LOGON project with good success, and it would be easy setting that
up for DELPH-IN too.  however, we would need a policy to prevent spam
from entering the database (LOGON _never_ published its email address
for PR submission, and most people file on the web anyway).

                                what are the opinions on this?  -  oe

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++ Universitetet i Oslo (IFI); Boks 1080 Blindern; 0316 Oslo; (+47) 2285 7989
+++     CSLI Stanford; Ventura Hall; Stanford, CA 94305; (+1 650) 723 0515
+++       --- oe at csli.stanford.edu; oe at ifi.uio.no; stephan at oepen.net ---
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