Re: Install program

[Eirik Mikkelsen <eirikmik orakel ntnu no>]

On Sun, 19 Apr 1998, Martin Baulig wrote:

<SNIP>
> would prefer something that does not crash during installation even if
> they re-install the whole base system.

This would not only be intended for sysadmins (I presume it is possible
for users to install additional gnome-programs in their homedirectory?). 

> That may be nice for W95, but really useful? RPM does an excellent task in
> making package building easylier, it handles dependencies, patches, ... -
> so why write just another package manager?

Not everyone uses rpm. RedHat provides the glint tool as a graphical
frontend to rpm, but it is not very appealing IMHO. 

This tool would not just be another package manager, but a frontend for
most of the common methods of distributing programs, both binary and
source (as far as this is possible). There would *not* be packages
*requiring* this tool, thus developers can distribute their programs
however they like. 

It could even include a function to update existing programs via a central
depot, like SoftwareValet for BeOS.

> 
> Maybe some graphical frontend to RPM - not to install packages - but to
> *build* them - and maybe to create spec files?

Well, why not just throw-in the possibility to install packages too?
You don't *have* to use it...

> > Any comments and/or flames? ;)
> >
> 
> Sorry, perhaps other people have an other oppinion - I prefer using the
> command line 'rpm' on /dev/tty1 to install packages - and for package
> building nowadays one has a packaging account and simply says 'rpm -ba
> blah blah blah ...'

Hey, I'm a die-hard text-mode command-line kinda guy too :-). Still one
of the goals of Gnome is to provide a consistent, userfriendly interface;
and I'm quite sure a nice *graphical* UI for the most common tasks is
required to be taken seriously by end users. 

Anyways, I have worked out a proposal for functions and interface for this
thingy. I am in the process of making a theta-version and will post the
url for screenshots and source if I get (any) positive feedback on this.

That is unless someone has a better idea as to what I can work with :-).


--
Eirik Mikkelsen - eirikmik@orakel.ntnu.no
Orakeltjenesten ITEA/DESK