Date: Tue, 07 Apr 2009 07:37:35 +0100 From: Matthew Seaman <m.seaman@infracaninophile.co.uk> To: Chris Whitehouse <cwhiteh@onetel.com> Cc: User Questions <freebsd-questions@freebsd.org> Subject: Re: new package system proposal Message-ID: <49DAF4AF.4060104@infracaninophile.co.uk> In-Reply-To: <49DA7BF0.80403@onetel.com> References: <49D76B02.4060201@onetel.com> <20090404170401.c0f0bce0.freebsd@edvax.de> <49D789BD.7020103@infracaninophile.co.uk> <49DA7BF0.80403@onetel.com>
next in thread | previous in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
This is an OpenPGP/MIME signed message (RFC 2440 and 3156)
--------------enig5C4D5744808C3992173A39BC
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
Chris Whitehouse wrote:
> You've suggested solutions to a couple of Polytropon's objections, than=
k=20
> you. Do you think there is anough mileage in my suggestion to make it=20
> worth putting in front of some ports people? What would have
> to happen to take it forward? I could rewrite the proposal more clearly=
=2E
Any well-considered proposal is interesting, and suitable fodder for the
freebsd-ports@... mailing list. However you must be prepared for your=20
ideas to undergo some fairly rigourous critique by people who have spent
a great deal of time in doing exactly the sort of operations you are talk=
ing
about. It can be pretty daunting -- remember though that it is your /ide=
as/
that are being dissected: it's not a personal attack against you for havi=
ng
the temerity to try and suggest something.
Also, as ever in the FreeBSD world, code speaks louder than words. It's =
easy for anyone to come up with a proposal, hard to turn that into a prot=
otype
that demonstrates the validity of your ideas. Expect skepticism until yo=
u
have done that. =20
> I suspect it would be easier to implement than freebsd-update, as a goo=
d=20
> deal of the infrastructure already exists, and would have similar=20
> benefits. To start developing it would require a ports tree and a=20
> selection of packages compiled from that ports tree. 7.2 Release is=20
> coming up. Maybe the ports tree plus packages from that would be a good=
=20
> place to start.
freebsd-update and portsnap existed only on Colin Percival's own machines=
for quite some time, and then they were made available through ports befo=
re=20
being accepted into the core system. That is the usual sort of progressi=
on
for any major new system modifications.
The infrastructure may well exist, but don't assume that there is any spa=
re
capacity on it. Getting time on the ports build cluster for running expe=
riments
is not impossible, but it's somewhere way down the queue after the daily
work of building packages for the FTP sites and testing the effects of bu=
g
fixes in the bsd.ports.mk infrastructure or important and highly intercon=
nected
groups of ports like xorg or gnome. Also, right before 7.2-RELEASE is pr=
obably
not the best time as that's when things are most hectic. Right /after/
7.2-RELEASE would be better
I think your basic idea of snapshotting the ports tree at regular interva=
ls
and building a self-consistent group of desktop related applications is a=
pretty good one actually. You need to work a bit on the details -- for
instance, is it worthwhile rebuilding (say) the X libraries if there have=
been no changes to them since the previous snapshot? Also, I'd take a go=
od
look at exactly how the PC-BSD and Desktop-BSD groups deal with this prob=
lem.
Cheers,
Matthew
--=20
Dr Matthew J Seaman MA, D.Phil. 7 Priory Courtyard
Flat 3
PGP: http://www.infracaninophile.co.uk/pgpkey Ramsgate
Kent, CT11 9PW
--------------enig5C4D5744808C3992173A39BC
Content-Type: application/pgp-signature; name="signature.asc"
Content-Description: OpenPGP digital signature
Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="signature.asc"
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
Version: GnuPG v2.0.11 (FreeBSD)
Comment: Using GnuPG with Mozilla - http://enigmail.mozdev.org
iEYEAREIAAYFAkna9LUACgkQ8Mjk52CukIw5VgCeO4EUD5IK0WQGM+kzDGbfWCRm
tToAn08NMsVvia1PTD2eATaXy34YcyES
=UISp
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
--------------enig5C4D5744808C3992173A39BC--
Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?49DAF4AF.4060104>