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From: "Dan Langille" <dan@langille.org>
Organization: langille.org
To: Palle Girgensohn <girgen@partitur.se>
Date: Mon, 24 Jul 2000 11:23:59 +1200
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Subject: Re: postgresql7 user message contains $PREFIX not /usr/local
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Cc: ports@freebsd.org, andreas@freebsd.org
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On 24 Jul 2000, at 1:05, Palle Girgensohn wrote:

> Dan Langille wrote:
> > 
> > On 24 Jul 2000, at 0:56, Palle Girgensohn wrote:
> > 
> > > Dan Langille wrote:
> > > >
> > > > I just installed databases/postgresql7 and spotted the following
> > > > message:
> > > >
> > > > To start PostgreSQL, run the startup script:
> > > > $PREFIX/etc/rc.d/pgsql.sh start ===>   Compressing manual pages for
> > > > postgresql-7.0.2
> > > >
> > > > To be nice to the user, who we all know doesn't know much, should we
> > > > say "/usr/local" instead of "$PREFIX"?
> > >
> > > I guess, if the user is using a different prefix than
> > > /usr/local, the user knows more than the average, and will
> > > exchange /usr/local for their favourite prefix automatically in
> > > his/her mind while reading the message ;-)
> > >
> > > You're probably right, putting /usr/local instead would
> > > probably confuse a smaller amount of users :)
> > 
> > Actually, I think it should say /usr/local/ only if that's what PREFIX
> > evaluates to.  My initial thoughts were that the code was not correctly
> > evaluating the $PREFIX variable.  Rather, the string "$PREFIX" was being
> > printed instead of the value contained within $PREFIX.
> 
> This could be done, but the text is in a file that is not
> parsed by the makefile. This could easily be done, though.

I suggest that either it be done (i.e. parsed by the makefile) or removed 
altogether and replaced with a hardcoded "/usr/local".

Most users will be using the default location (/usr/local).  Those users, 
and many of them will be novices, will only be confused by seeing  
"$PREFX//etc/rc.d/pgsql.sh".

And those advanced users who are not using /usr/local will know what 
$PREFIX means and will know where their "etc/rc.d" directory is.

I appreciate the intent behind "$PREFIX/etc/rc.d/pgsql.sh", but we must 
remember the people who don't know as much as we do.  They're the 
ones we can't alienate.

It would also avoid needless posts to -questions such as "I can't find my 
$PREFIX/etc/rc.d/pgsql.sh directory...".  ;)
--
Dan Langille  [I'm looking for more work]
The FreeBSD Diary - http://www.freebsddiary.org/
FreshPorts - http://freshports.org/


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