Re: [MiNT] Re[2]: GEM boost

[Maurits van de Kamp <maurits@bassment.nu>]

> I never meant that RPMs causes dynamic lib dependancies, only that RPM
> wasn't the greatest way to deal with them.  The problem seems to be that
> many RPMs have an exact version of a library as the dependency.  That may
> have been improved.

Again that's more a problem of the packages than of RPM itself; it has to 
check version compatibility, and when a package claims it needs exactly 
version x of a library, RPM can't do anything else than complain about it. 
RPM itself does have enough functionality to deal with this; a package can 
specify it needs at lesat (or most) a specific version, but it can also even 
demand certain features from a library rather than a version.

> Where is there English documentation on OLGA?   Is it MP safe?

No idea.. but if OLGA isn't good enough and a better MP safe solution was 
made, it wouldn't be any easier to configure. ;o)

> What if things were installed, via RPM, to a Unix-like structure, but the
> desktop could give a "virtual" view of the package?   This is part of a
> desktop
> idea I have where data sources and data views are seperate and abtract.
> (...)

It sounds nice. Although it doesn't have to be a virtual directory, it could 
just as well be the interface of a graphical RPM manager.

> Does ext2 on MiNT have real mount points?

No, mount points are "above" the filesystem drivers so it's not a feature of 
ext2.

> Having to mount everything 
> to U: and
> then symlink it seems like a pain.

Everything automatically is mounted to U: and you make the simlinks instead of 
mounting. I agree this is a bit fake, but where's the pain? :o)

> >> Also, I hate playing "hunt the file" when some config file has to be
> >> edited.
> >
> > That's why you need proper documentation. In any system.
>
> Or one that is well set up.   User configuration files go to the user's
(...)

Well, that's exactly why I'm in favor of the fixed Unix filestructure. :o)

> What if the CLI automatically popped up when you need it?  For example,
> instead
> of running TOSWIN, and then having it run bash, you run BASH, and the
> window appears when the program tries to output to the console?  Would that
> be slightly easier?

You can configure Toswin to automatically run any text-based app you open from 
the desktop. That's actually what it was meant for in the first place.

(...)
> However, the complaint that some dependancy isn't met is annoying.

It's much more annoying if it doesn't complain and the installed software just 
doesn't work properly. :o)

> Any end-user interface for RPM should be capable of finding dependant RPMs
> on your drive or the internet and downloading them for you and installing
> them automatically.  Something like yum.

Of course. And inside distributions this is even easier; I assume that all the 
packages available for SpareMiNT include the ones they require, so an install 
tool could just download everything it needs and wouldn't even have to search 
for it.

Automatic downloads of depended packages is the only argument I ever hear from 
deb-lovers-rpm-haters but in the last 5 years at least I've never seen an 
RPM-based distribution that didn't automatically select (and hence download) 
any required RPM. :o)

Maurits.