Polarsys/UseCases

Support

How to ensure that a bug is fixed in a timely fashion, given that the Polarsys WG does not have enough ressources to provide such services ?

A solution could be the following:

• Users that want professional support subscribe to a professional services offer provided by a Branded Polarsys Provider, which could include:
  • Advice, explanations regarding the use of the tools;
  • Bug fixes;
• In order to distinguish from the Polarsys WG and therefore be able to have a sustainable business model, Branded Polarsys Providers must offer additional added value, which could be :
  • the provision of validated binaries that are not provided by the Polarsys WG, and
  • the provision of customer-specific releases when there is an urgent and important bug to be fixed;
• To provide for VLTS, support contracts should include the following best practices:
  • All patches should be given back to the Polarsys LTS branch,
  • unless there is a good technical or confidentiality reason provided.
• The Polarsys WG would provide to its members a demo version only to avoid competing with Branded providers.

Open questions:

1. Support Contracts are accessible only to Polarsys members ?
2. who controls the Polarsys VLTS branch ?
3. What if there is no Branded provider in a given area ?

Feature Request

Feature requests should be treated the same way:

• When someone needs a new feature, he does it as part of a contract with a Branded Polarsys provider;
• The development should be given back to the Polarsys LTS branch, unless there is a good technical not to do so; this way, users are sure not to pay two times for the same feature;

Open questions:

• Is it possible to find a system that allow users sharing the development costs ?
  • If we use a system based on good will, we are likely to end up in a situation where urgent needs are funded by individual users, no matter the Polarsys roadmap, and non-urgent needs will remain unfunded forever;
  • A mandatory system is likely not to be approved.

Configuration Management is a transverse issue to Bug Fix and Feature Requests

Too many versions tends towards a custom development model and lowers economy of scale. In order to save money and allow affordable support, we need to tend to COTS.