[csw-maintainers] Handling of devel package splits

[James Lee]

On 05/10/09, 10:05:49, Dagobert Michelsen <dam at opencsw.org> wrote regarding
Re: [csw-maintainers] Handling of devel package splits:

> >> I would like to proceed on the splitting of devel packages as a
> >> package
> >> of mine is pending release whether the decision on this topic.
> >
> >> The current poll is
> >> - 5 maintainers for "split off devel"
> >> - 1 maintainer for "decide on case-by-case"
> >
> >> Does anyone feel that there is need for more discussion?
> >
> > Yes since you are missing options and no justification is offered.

> And that missing options would be?

As previously communicated.

The only addition I have it to version runtimes as it means only one
version is needed at a time for a given depend.

jpeg depends on jpeg7rt
jpeg7rt - latest runtime
jpeg62rt - legacy runtime

packages depend on whichever rt version being used.


> The justification is that it is a Good Thing not to have headers on
> a deployment machine and that it is confusing for users to sometimes
> have the devel-files inside the main package and sometimes not.

Thank you, that's a start.  Any proposal should start by stating the
problem it's trying to solve.

In the case of X11 packages (example at start) a user doesn't install
(because only the libs are needed) so this problem does not exist.

We have to balance the confusion of installing package foo and not
getting product foo.  It's traditional for Unix machines to come with
headers.  I agree a first time user thinks "what all this for?" but
why is a user looking in /usr/include?  It's not like they are the
only headers on the system nor the only thing a user won't use.



> >> Has anyone (especially those who have voted) understood that the
> >> split
> >> will then be mandatory for package releases?
> >
> > No.  You have not made that clear.
> >
> > The poll lumps doc too but the thread subject says devel.

> What does "lumps doc" mean?

lump = "3. a collection of things; aggregate"
doc = documentation
combined with "too" you are ruling on the documentation files with the
same action as developments files.



James.