[MacPorts] #29692: SVN checkout fails for netpbm

[MacPorts]

#29692: SVN checkout fails for netpbm
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  Reporter:  KNIZEK.MILAN@…          |       Owner:  mas@…                   
      Type:  defect                  |      Status:  closed                  
  Priority:  Normal                  |   Milestone:                          
 Component:  ports                   |     Version:  1.9.2                   
Resolution:  invalid                 |    Keywords:  svn, netpbm, https, http
      Port:  netpbm                  |  
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Comment(by dazquick@…):

 The issue is not http vs https. The issue is with inconsistency resulting
 in poor user experience, and a methodology that encourages making changes
 at random based on fleeting conditions. Firstly, this permanent change was
 made in response to a server condition that was resolved long ago. For all
 I know, this server problem lasted only hours or days. This does not seem
 to me to be good practice. Secondly, the result is that - to the end-user
 - the use of the https proxy is both random and rare. This is a problem
 even if you don't seem to agree. The result is that for the user, they may
 download 100 packages through their proxy and they all work, except one
 fails with a generic error message. They repeat with the same result. It
 is my expectation of a typical user that they would initially think this
 is a server issue, after all they have have 198 successes through their
 current proxy configuration. They have been given no indication that of
 all the packages they have downloaded this one has used a different
 protocol. So they'll spend some time (minutes? hours?) Googling the error
 message until it is suggested they locate the portfile and check the URL.
 Then they might notice that it is using the https protocol, compare it
 with other portfiles, and hopefully realise the source of the problem.
 This is what you'd like users to experience when using MacPorts?

 You say that https is superior to http? I completely agree. If that's the
 case, change all portfiles to use https. Or better yet, don't specify a
 protocol in the portfile, check https first, then fallback to http, all
 the while printing messages such as 'Connecting to xxx on https: Failed',
 'Connecting to xxx on http: Success'. At least there's some indication to
 the user what the source of the problem is on failure. The current
 approach of rare and seemingly random use of https with generic error
 messages on failure strikes me as particularly user unfriendly.

 Replying to [comment:7 ryandesign@…]:
 > The idea expressed here that changing netpbm's fetch from https to http
 will make it more likely to succeed is bizarre and backwards to me. We
 have in multiple other ports had to change fetching from http to https to
 avoid proxy problems. Proxy servers can and do interfere with http traffic
 and many of them do not understand the additional WebDAV HTTP verbs that
 Subversion uses, often resulting in fetch errors. Switching to https fixes
 this because https traffic is encrypted, thus proxy servers cannot decode
 it or mess with it.
 >
 > If you are having problems fetching this or any other port that fetches
 from an https URL, and fetching the same port via http works fine, and
 you've verified it isn't just an intermittent issue, and you're using a
 proxy server, then contact your proxy server's administrator.

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Ticket URL: <https://trac.macports.org/ticket/29692#comment:8>
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