Re: Merging Octave and Octave-Forge?

[Jonathan Stickel]

On 8/27/08 address@hidden wrote:
> From: "John W. Eaton" <address@hidden>
> Subject: Re: Merging Octave and Octave-Forge?
> To: Thomas Weber <address@hidden>
> Cc: address@hidden
> Message-ID: <address@hidden>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
>
> On 27-Aug-2008, Thomas Weber wrote:
>
> | If you don't want that behaviour, don't install the package. The
> | package's documentation is totally clear about the package's effects.
>
> | but if people install stuff blindly, the only sensible

I have been following this discussion with some interest.  I think part 
of the problem is that users are used to installing all of the 
octave-forge packages or non at all.  Historically, octave-forge was a 
monolithic add-on.  The shift to individual packages was a fantastic 
idea and was fairly well implemented.  However, it seems that users 
still want to install what is now called the octave-forge "bundle" 
rather than individual packages, and this is made worse by the various 
distribution options (windows installer, fink on mac, various linux 
distributions, etc.).

I am not sure about a solution.  I am tempted to suggest that the 
mainteners stop providing a bundled download option, but I think that 
would annoy a lot of users.  Perhaps a better solution is to somehow 
make all the packages "unloaded" by default when installed from the bundle.

Anyway, that is my 2 cents.

Jonathan