Suggestions for using GitHub Actions for validating appstream metainfo

[cbm755]

1. I can install Flatpak on Ubuntu 22.04, get Flathub, then install org.freedesktop.appstream.cli. Here's an example of this

https://github.com/gnu-octave/octave-doctest/pull/287/files

But that feels a bit "heavy".

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2. Wait for Ubuntu 24.04 which presumably will have more up-to-date Appstream package.

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3. I don't know much about GitHub Actions: perhaps this project could publish something so that we could:

actions/appstream-cli-validate@v1

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4. something else?

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On GitLab I can use any containers I want, so I simply choose one with appstream >= 1, such as:

• fedora:40 image which has appstreamcli >= 1.
• alpine currently has 0.16.3 but will probably soon have 0.16.4.
  Example of the alpine here: https://gitlab.com/plom/plom/-/merge_requests/2540

[cbm755]

5. Likely, this can be used too:

docker run --rm -it ghcr.io/flathub/flatpak-builder-lint:latest

(from https://github.com/flathub-infra/flatpak-builder-lint)

[bbhtt]

The linter is specific to Flathub and contains overrides and patches to appstream, specific to Flathub.

If you want it for testing Flathub deployments, use it. If the goal is to mirror upstream behaviour then it's probably not the thing you want.

[ximion]

Of course we could provide a Docker container, but TBH, using the Flatpak would be way less "heavy"...
In the past there was a PPA with up-to-date AppStream, that would - for the GitHub CI - probably be the easiest option.

[JakobDev]

I use the Archlinux Image, as it always have the latest version of AppStream