Re: config packages [Was: rm -r * and the default prompt]

[Milan Zamazal <pdm@fi.muni.cz>]

>>>>> "EZ" == Enrique Zanardi <ezanardi@noah.dfis.ull.es> writes:

    EZ: The problem with that approach is that many of those "newbie"
    EZ: settings are just a matter of taste. We don't want to set a
    EZ: thousand of those parameters in hundreths of different config
    EZ: files that will have to be edited to reset them.

    EZ: It would be easier if all those parameters could be grouped in
    EZ: a single config package. We may have a handful of those to
    EZ: choose (hint: "themes"). It may even be useful for
    EZ: localization!

1. I don't know whether I like the idea of a single config package or not
but I can see the following questions:
- Is it easy/possible to maintain single config package for many
  programs?
- Isn't it better to let this work to each package maintainer because
  he does probably understand it very well?  I don't think there
  are many (hundreds) packages which need some kind of newbie
  customization.  If I understand it well it should be about ten to
  twenty files in `/etc/skel/'.
- On the other side wouldn't be better to let this configuration
  things to one package with one maintainer ("newbies manager"), who
  could watch newbies questions on debian.user etc. so he knows what
  the *real* problems are?

2. IMO, there is no problem with settings like bash prompt customized for
newbies, if such settings are not too much annoying for many people
(they shouldn't, it's not good idea to introduce newbies to annoying
things).  I think any advanced user copies his .profile, .bash*,
.xinitrc, .fvwm* or whatever soon to his new account on which he
intends to work regularly.  So he is almost indifferent to these
settings.

3. BTW, to discussion about long dirs in prompt, why not to use two lines
prompt?  I have in .bashrc

  MACHINE=$(uname -n)
  MACHINE=${MACHINE%%.*}
  PS1='
  $PWD
  $MACHINE$ '

and I'm very satisfied with it.

Milan Zamazal


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