Amarok Crash Handler to KDE?

[Max Howell]

> A better way, I think, would be a simple window telling the application 
> terminated unexpectingly, with a button "Report the bug": then the user enter 
> a description and it is send to an HTTP server (to avoid to configure a SMTP 
> server, figure out one from a mail client, trying to avoid firewalls)...
> And why not, the HTTP server could look at previous backtraces to find 
> similarities and potentialy reply to the user "This crash has been solved in 
> the version X.Y. You can download it here.".
> 
> What do you think about that?

The reason I made it open an email window is that it stops the user 
being frightened about what is being sent to us, it's simple, it's 
email, they understand email, they just have to push the send button.

Also it gives us an email address to correspond with, and it makes it 
easy for them to attach music files, screenshots etc. if they need to. 
Email is a flexible, tried and tested system.

Also it's KISS.

 > Of course, developers could display the "full version" with backtrace 
 > and link to KDevelop, but casual KDE users are not developers, so they
 > do not have to read backtraces.

It used to be the backtrace was an attachment, but this was changed as 
it was a PITA for us to open attachments all the time. It doesn't hurt 
that the user sees the backtrace, they don't understand it but thus they 
just ignore it. I see no reason to hide it really.

Glad you like the idea though and use it, and KDE 4 can have it, but no 
way can I bothered with the politics of submitting it. Feel free though!

For a KDE 4 solution I'd agree with a less technical solution, basically 
a modified Dr. Konqi without a backtrace tab, as you say, what's the 
point? The user doesn't care about a definition for a SIGSERV etc. 
either. I'd still make the send report button open a plain email compose 
dialog myself though, for the reasons I stated above.

In fact what I described above would be an improved solution for Amarok 
too. What we have was the minimum required to get it working.

Max