Jay Summet wrote:
>
> Suggest you default to CONSERVATIVE but allow the user (perhaps in EXPERT
> mode?) to chose from the others.
>
> Jay Summet
>
> > 1) CONSERVATIVE: just freshen those packages which can be freshened and
> > leave the rest of the system as it is
The default setting
> >
> > 2) FORCED: Force instalation of a new "core" system, even if this
> > means downgroading, or breaks some functionality of the already installed
> > system, then go on with freshening the rest of the packages.
> >
> > 3) REPAIR: Like conservative, but try to repair existing packages too,
> > If we find out that some of the files are missing, or that someone fooled
> > with binaries, reinstall the package (even if it means downgrading!)
> >
> > 4) FORCED REPAIR: like 3, but make sure that "core" system is installed in
> > the end, like in 2
> >
> > 5) VANDAL: force install of the core, and upgrade of those packages we
> > provide. The rest can go to hell. ;->>
> >
> > 6) SUPER-VANDAL: like 5, but i make sure that all packages older than one
> > year are removed from the system. (ups, I just found another variable for
> > sorting packages!)
> >
The custom or expert settings
Plus
7) INTERACTIVE wherein the same info is displayed about a package
as the info in individual package selection and the user
interactively marks the action to be taken (a)Freshen, b)Install
if not there and no dependencies are broken, c)Warn about
dependencies and ask what to do again, d)Damn the torpedoes,
strip out what is necessary to make it work, 4)Double-damn the
torpedoes, strip out everything, including what has been
previously installed this upgrade to make this work [like postfix
has been installed and nmh and fetchmail and mutt, but now we
GOTTA have sendmail, so raze and pillage]
Cross-platform upgrades might well have their limits. I can see
it with RH or Caldera, but (coughs) how about the other major rpm
user who also likes to modify the kernel? And the distros based
on dbm? Cheaper and quicker in those cases to back up data and
do a fresh install with recompilation (by the user) of favorite
packages still desired from the old distro? As much as some users
might want it, there is a limit to what this tweak can do, beyond
which "There Be Tygers" and people posting email prefaced with
"WDYTWA, Magicians?"
In line with that, there are some things an upgrade should NOT
offer to do, such as change filesystems in place. This can be
extremely dangerous in the cases where it IS possible, which it
more likely will not be. Naturally, as part of what an upgrade
can and cannot do there must be explanations of why one can or
cannot do such things, which I will happily volunteer to assist
with.
I am a user who found upgrades from Win95 to Win98 worked out
about 1 situation in 7, so I would not fault anyone who found
upgrading something that was 6 to 10 times as sophisticated and
complicated to be an enormous task. Getting from RH6.0 to L-M7.1
is an amazing feat, and convinces me once again that I made the
right decision in choosing Mandrake.
Civileme
