Gentoo

Web Page: http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/Google_Summer_of_Code_2009_ideas

Mailing List: gentoo-dev@lists.gentoo.org

Gentoo is a free operating system based on either Linux or FreeBSD that can be automatically optimized and customized for just about any application or need. Extreme configurability, performance and a top-notch user and developer community are all hallmarks of the Gentoo experience.

Projects

• Create and release a Gentoo stats server/client Implement a client and server application to gather information about installed packages and related details from Gentoo systems. As smolt (https://fedorahosted.org/smolt/) is collecting hardware information in a similar fashion, extending smolt by Gentoo-specific algorithms speeds up development on our end and also helps pushing smolt further towards its goal of becoming the cross-distribution statistics gathering tool.
• Portage backend for PackageKit Making PortageKit working with Gentto will help Gentoo to be used by more casual users than currently general Gentoo users. The project consist of developing the backend and adapt portage to make it more compatible with PackageKit rules which should be common package managers rules (or options). The choice of portage has been done because it's the main Gentoo package manager.
• Porting Portage and its tools on NetBSD/x86 platform For ages now, Gentoo uses Portage tools as its main package manager. Experienced users love the fine-grained customization it offers thanks to features like the USE flags, masking, etc.. The idea is to port Portage on NetBSD; anyone should be able to download a stage tarball containing Portage, the tree, and its tools and to use them on NetBSD.
• Tree-wide collision checking and provided files database Gentoo emerge is checking for file collisions before installing packages. However this collision checking only works after package has been compiled. This is natural since Gentoo is source based and package contents are different for every architecture, set of USE flags and compiler options. Proposed project would provide users and more importantly Gentoo QA team access to database of files in packages from Portage tree. This information can be used for many useful purposes.
• Universal Select Tool Universal Select Tool is an utility to manage system configuration. This tool is similar to the unmaintained eselect utility of Gentoo or Exherbo's eclectic. The idea is to create a tool that manages both system settings and user settings with profile creation possibilities. The utility will use mostly concepts from "modules", "softenv", and both "eselect" and "eclectic".
• Web-based Image Builder The purpose of this project is to create a web-based utility in PHP that will generate on demand images of Linux installations. Its main purpose will be the creation of embedded systems, with the potential to branch out later for use in installing Gentoo on desktop systems. The project will combine existing tools to give the user maximum control over the final system and make Gentoo much easier to use in machines on which it would be difficult to control or run the installation process locally.