Re: [Synaptic-devel] Patch: add rpm-src-dir support + some ideas

[Michael Vogt]

Hi,

On Wed, Nov 12, 2003 at 01:21:29PM +0200, Panu Matilainen wrote:
> The attached patch adds support for rpm-src-dir to Synaptic (rpm-src-dir 
> was just added upstream to apt-rpm). Not that there's any use for that in 
> Synaptic but at least it knows what the dang thing is :)

Yeah! Thanks a lot. I applied the patch and it will be part of 0.46
(to be released shortly I hope).

> Now on to the ideas which this just spurred up:
> 
> 1) Strange/wild idea of adding *easy* support for local repositories: 
> Think about a situation where a user has downloaded stuff from various 
> places into ~/packages. How do you go installing those from Synaptic? You 
> either figure out how to run genbasedir on that (or use rpm-dir on 
> rpm-systems) and add to source lists. Not particularly user friendly...
> I'm thinking of something like "find local repositories from this system" 
> menu-entry/button in the repository setup window, which would search the 
> local disk for things looking like repositories (for rpm-dir that's easy, 
> anything RPMS.<foo> basically) and add those automatically to 
> sources.list. Where rpm-dir can't be used that gets much more complicated 
> (find suitable directories, run genbasedir, add to sources.list .. and 
> keep on running genbasedir on that to keep it in sync at suitable 
> points...) but maybe not impossible?

Hm, that sounds interessting. Coincidentally I got a request for this
feature a couple of days ago from a debian user :) Looks like there
are more people waiting for it. What about a somewhat simpler way?
Here is my idea:
Add a button into the reposiotry dialog called "Add/create local
respoitory". This opens a dialog where the user has to choose a
directory (maybe even adding the option to search automatically for
it) with the rpms in. When he clicks "finish" (or "create")
apt-ftparchive (or whatever programm creates the Package.gz file) is
run and the file:// URI is added to the sources.list file. 
[we would have to add a button like "update" to regenerate the
Package.gz file].

What do you think?

> 2) Would there be interest in getting Synaptic to support source retrieval 
> and build-dep installation? Those obviously are of little interest for the 
> average end user and maybe the average developer uses apt for that ... but 
> then currently the average developer doesn't have a choice :)

Well, I don't have any interesst in it :) But maybe someone else? 

> 3) Better integration with apt's Lua-interface would be welcome. Now only 
> a few Lua-slots trigger when using Synaptic, making many scripts 
> useless / almost-so, and reporting anything back to the user from even 
[..lua stuff..]

This is a problem for me. Debians apt does not support lua at all. So
I can't test and/or develop it. I have no idea if lua support is
planed for the debian apt. I'm open to patches though, but my
understanding of lua and the lua slots of apt is basicly 
non-existend. Gustavo told me he is thinking about adding some lua
support for synaptic. I'll trust his judgement :)

thanks for your comments,
 Michael


-- 
Linux is not The Answer. Yes is the answer. Linux is The Question. - Neo