Bart Smaalders wrote:
> Darren J Moffat wrote:
>> Peter Tribble wrote:
>>> It isn't at all clear to me that any answer other than 'use tarballs'
>>> is really appropriate here. I've done quite a lot of this sort of
>>> thing, and tarballs (or, more generally, a simple archive I can extract)
>>> is exactly what I want. I want to try a new app *now*. I want to be
>>> able to try different versions, compile it myself with different
>>> options, throw the whole lot away and start over. The last thing
>>> I want is any software management framework getting in the way.
>>
>> One reason is that for the teams producing the bits there is a cost to 
>> packaging them up.  For some products/projects they must deliver in 
>> the system package format (pkgadd or rpm or whatever the system 
>> package format is).  Having to also deliver (and constantly redeliver) 
>> multiple bundles costs.  This is one reason to only deliver in the 
>> system package format and have that be installable both for 
>> "production use" and for "evaluation"/"development".
>>
>> I know of projects inside Sun that have complaints about this resource 
>> addition.
>>
> 
> Note that it would be not difficult to allow packages to
> function as tarballs for non-priv'd users.

Which is effectively what this project is all about, right ?
Non root install of packages.

> Of course, privs required to make postinstall scripts, etc
> run correctly won't be there... but that wouldn't work in
> a tarball, either.

If a postinstall script needs privilege it is either a bug in the 
postinstall script or it is a package that isn't appropriate for end 
user install (eg a device driver).  So yes these things don't work in 
the tarball case either.

-- 
Darren J Moffat

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