From owner-freebsd-ports@FreeBSD.ORG Fri Mar 20 21:24:29 2009 Return-Path: Delivered-To: ports@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.freebsd.org (mx1.freebsd.org [IPv6:2001:4f8:fff6::34]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 8321D1065675 for ; Fri, 20 Mar 2009 21:24:29 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from 1cynthia2flynn3@telus.net) Received: from defout.telus.net (defout.telus.net [204.209.205.13]) by mx1.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 2FC498FC1D for ; Fri, 20 Mar 2009 21:24:28 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from 1cynthia2flynn3@telus.net) Received: from priv-edmwaa04.telusplanet.net ([204.209.205.55]) by priv-edmwes50.telusplanet.net (InterMail vM.7.08.04.00 201-2186-134-20080326) with ESMTP id <20090320212428.BUIO4202.priv-edmwes50.telusplanet.net@priv-edmwaa04.telusplanet.net>; Fri, 20 Mar 2009 15:24:28 -0600 Received: from oliver.bc.lan (d75-157-11-254.bchsia.telus.net [75.157.11.254]) by priv-edmwaa04.telusplanet.net (BorderWare Security Platform) with ESMTP id 5FC0150538329716; Fri, 20 Mar 2009 15:24:28 -0600 (MDT) Received: from [10.111.111.112] (unknown [10.111.111.112]) by oliver.bc.lan (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9546162AA; Fri, 20 Mar 2009 14:24:27 -0700 (PDT) Message-ID: <49C4098A.6030200@telus.net> Date: Fri, 20 Mar 2009 14:24:26 -0700 From: Cynthia Flynn <1cynthia2flynn3@telus.net> User-Agent: Thunderbird 2.0.0.19 (Windows/20081209) MIME-Version: 1.0 To: Steven Kreuzer References: <49C00745.1050607@telus.net> <20090318001138.GF95451@onelab2.iet.unipi.it> <20090318113023.7bc51ef4@ernst.jennejohn.org> <49c1fd04.Ul73kIip/JpE7k7C%perryh@pluto.rain.com> <830D8719-1F55-4BE7-B6D5-3C711F2D57C1@exit2shell.com> In-Reply-To: <830D8719-1F55-4BE7-B6D5-3C711F2D57C1@exit2shell.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Cc: ports@freebsd.org, rizzo@iet.unipi.it, perryh@pluto.rain.com, gary.jennejohn@freenet.de Subject: Re: mtools vs X11 (Re: FreeBSD Port: syslinux-3.72) X-BeenThere: freebsd-ports@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: Porting software to FreeBSD List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Fri, 20 Mar 2009 21:24:29 -0000 Steven Kreuzer wrote: > On Mar 19, 2009, at 4:06 AM, perryh@pluto.rain.com wrote: >> Gary Jennejohn wrote: >>> Luigi Rizzo wrote: >>>> ... Cynthia Flynn wrote: >>> [snip - syslinux pulls in too much X11 stuff] >>>> I think the extra dependencies that you find listed for syslinux: >>>> [snip] >>>> come directly from mtools ... >>> >>> Yeah. It looks like mtools uses X11 by default, which IMHO is >>> incorrect. Instead it should have an option to turn X11 _on_, >>> rather than one for turning it _off_, as it currently does. >> >> IMO it is a POLA violation for mtools to depend on X11 *at all*. >> >> Instead of having an option, maybe the port should be split so that >> mtools itself just provides the code to access FAT filesystems, and >> (say) mtools-gui does the fancy display stuff. > > mtools already supports WITHOUT_X11 so if you don't want the GUI stuff, > you can build the port > without it. Personally, I think it makes more sense for mtools to be the > full and complete representation > of the actual program. Can someone confirm for me that a normal port install of mtools brings up a configuration menu in which the WITHOUT_X11 option can be set? I do not remember seeing any such thing, but it has probably been 6 months since I last tried it. I would never have guessed mtools was a GUI application. I've only ever heard of and seen mtools being used as a command line tool set and therefore had the expectation that its port would be available to FreeBSD server operators in a fashion that makes sense for non-GUI users. Perhaps I am not as typical a user as I thought, and you folks certainly aren't obligated to address the requirements of niche users, but if the setting of WITHOUT_X11 is not clearly presented for setting during a normal port install then I would humbly suggest that for all practical purposes it doesn't exist for most users. Cynthia