An option to ignore local dependencies

[codificat]

Problem statement

As a Data Scientist looking to incorporate Thoth's stack guidance service to my existing project,
I find that my current Pipfile is not supported by Thoth because it contains a package reference to a local path, e.g.

src = {path = "./src/boilerplate"}

(or an equivalent content in requirements.txt, e.g. ./src/boilerplate)

that I use to share code between my various notebooks.

This prevents me from using Thoth to get advise on my software stack.

High-level Goals

To provide an option in the advise service that allows the user to state their desire to ignore references to local path packages.

Proposal description

The proposal would allow users of the advise service to specify an option to ignore the presence of local modules referenced as dependencies.

It should be very clear in the option's help and associated documentation:

• what are the consequences of using that option
• what alternatives exist, and why they are better
• which use cases this option is meant to address

Alternatives

Leave it as is and do not accept path-based dependencies.

Additional context

Documentation about this would be closely related to / part of #411.

This feature request was discussed in the Let's talk Thoth tech... meeting on 2022-05-19 (meeting notes / recording).

About where does this request comes from / how much demand there would be, some anecdotal references:

• This request was raised, in part, from discussions with the os-climate team, see [Epic] Contribute to successful usage of Thoth Service in the OS-Climate project #401.
• pip's documentation says: It is extremely common to have a project, available in a folder/directory on your computer that you wish to install.
• A GitHub search for editable filename:Pipfile currently returns ~5K code results. For comparison, a search for torch filename:Pipfile brings ~1K results.

Acceptance Criteria

• an option to skip local packages during an advise exists
• the documentation of the option clearly covers:
  • which use cases this option is meant to cover
  • what alternatives exist to using that option
  • pros and cons of the option and the alternatives

[sesheta]

@codificat: This issue is currently awaiting triage.
If a refinement session determines this is a relevant issue, it will accept the issue by applying the
triage/accepted label and provide further guidance.

The triage/accepted label can be added by org members by writing /triage accepted in a comment.

Instructions for interacting with me using PR comments are available here. If you have questions or suggestions related to my behavior, please file an issue against the kubernetes/test-infra repository.

[goern]

/sig user-experience
/priority backlog

[codificat]

/wg cnbi