About bif
    Bif is a distributed bug tracker with a command-line interface. It helps
    you manage tasks and issues using a local database, exchanging updates
    with remote databases on demand. The tool has several features of
    interest to distributed project teams:

    Offline Operation
        Many bif actions work offline; you can create and update tasks and
        issues while disconnected from the network.

    Inter-project Cooperation
        Bif issues (and tasks) can be linked with (or copied to) multiple
        projects, mirroring the inter-project relationships that exist in
        the real world.

    This flexibility comes with minimal additional complexity; bif commands
    are designed for consistency and ease of use. Bif will eventually run on
    any system that supports Perl and SQLite, but currently only passes
    tests on Linux and BSD systems.

  Who is bif for?
    Bif is typically useful for software development teams and other
    distributed project organisations. Bif could work for you if the
    following statements resonate:

    *   You are comfortable working in a command-line environment

    *   Your team is spread across different locations

    *   Your projects have external dependencies

    Interfaces based on bif (not developed yet) could also be suitable for
    other kinds of non-technical users with distributed communication needs:
    helpdesk function, business-to-business relationships, multinational
    organisations, etc.

  What problems does bif attempt to address?
    In addition to the generic problems facing every project organisation,
    bif aims to answer the following specific challenges:

    Uncertain network connectivity
        It is a difficult task to maintain good communication and status
        tracking within a distributed project when the data network is an
        unreliable or expensive resource. Efficiency and productivity are
        improved with a local tool.

    External dependencies
        Projects can experience time and cost difficulties when they have
        external dependencies. Keeping track of the status in someone else's
        issue tracking system is a thankless, manual process. If you can't
        find the resources to do so then the lack of coordination leads to
        duplication of effort, delays, or important issues falling through
        the cracks.

    Command-line/browser context-switching
        It takes a certain amount of effort to get your mind fully into a
        good edit/compile/test cycle. Switching contexts to record your
        progress in a browser is a painful and inefficient way to break up
        your day. You would be better off going for a walk.

Software Status
    Although functional, bif is still under active development.
    Documentation and tests are incomplete, and the database schema changes
    regularly. DO NOT USE BIF FOR REAL DATA! We are actively seeking
    contributors. See below for how you can help.

Community Organisation
    Bif is community supported software, and the community expects (and
    should offer) respectful communication with all of its members.

    Website:
        <http://bifax.org/bif/>

    Code Repository:
        git://bifax.org/bif.git/

    Issue Tracker:
        Doesn't exit yet.

    Mailing List:
        Subscribe via <http://www.freelists.org/list/bif-devel> and then
        send mail to <bif-devel@freelists.org>.

Installing
    As a Perl wrapper around an SQLite database, bif depends on several
    packages from the Comprehensive Perl Archive Network (CPAN
    <http://cpan.org>). Bif and its dependencies can be easily installed
    system-wide with the "cpan" tool which is a standard part of Perl.

        sudo cpan App::bif

    Note that some of the dependencies require a C compiler to build.

    Alternatively you might find the right pre-compiled binary for your
    system at <http://bifax.org/bif/download/>.

Documentation
    The bif-doc-intro document contains an easy introduction to bif. The
    main entry point for reference documentation is the bif manual which you
    can read with "man bif" or "perldoc bif". You can also browse the
    documentation table of contents at <http://bifax.org/bif/doc/>.

Contributing
    You do not have to be a developer to contribute to bif! It is arguable
    that many key aspects of successful open source projects have more to do
    with the community and non-development contributions than technical
    skills. Help would be appreciated for practically anything:

    *   Editing the reference documentation

    *   User-interface consistency checks

    *   Website design

    *   Blogging & advocacy

    *   Translation - no framework in place yet though

    *   Operating system distribution integrators

    *   Perl / SQLite test writers (many tests needed!)

    *   Software architect? The overall design could use a big dose of
        third-party analysis.

    *   Security Analyst? Feel like starting a bif-doc-security document or
        otherwise letting us know which vectors are most vulnerable? I find
        it important to put some effort in here before bif becomes (if ever)
        widely used.

    *   Big-picture thinker? How could the bif model of information
        distribution be applied to address books, slow-changing datasets
        (e.g. country lists, currencies), business transactions, etc.

    *   Financial sponsorship would also be more than welcome.

    What long-term project members lose relatively quickly are those fresh
    eyes and first impressions that easily identify missing, broken and
    unexplained things. Therefore feedback from first-time users, both
    positive and negative, is extremely valuable. Please get in touch!

Development
    For those comfortable with git, development takes place on the "dev"
    branch of the git repository, with communication via the development
    mailing list.

        git clone git://bifax.org/bif.git --branch dev
        cd bif

    See the bif-doc-dev document for information on how to hack on bif.

License
    Bif is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the
    terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free
    Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or (at your
    option) any later version.

    This program, and all material accompanying it, is distributed in the
    hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the
    implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
    See the GNU General Public License for more details.

Credits
    Bif was started by Mark Lawrence <nomad@null.net>. Other contributions
    are listed in bif-doc-changelog.

