seeking advice concerning xtide package split

[Peter S Galbraith <GalbraithP@dfo-mpo.gc.ca>]

I'm seeking a bit of advice about an upcoming package split.

I maintain the xtide package.  Currently, it's not a pristine
package: I add harmonics data to the package that are otherwise
downloaded manually from the author's web site (it was packaged
this way when I adopted it).  Since the xtide software itself and
the harmonics data are updated independently by the author, I
want to split off the package into the software and a supporting
data package.  This will allow:

 - Upload of each part following their own upstream schedule.

 - The data part is big (8.4MB installed), so users with small
   pipes could put it on hold and only update the software.

 - `stable' users could probably install data from `unstable'.

Here's are the package split options I'm seeking advice on:

1- In a perfect world, I'd create `xtide' and `xtide-data' with
   xtide recommending xtide-data (except that apt-get does
   nothing about recommended packages).

   Advantages:  
    - Follows Debian tradition.
    - Users could temporarilly install xtide-data, edit the
      stations of interest to them into a new data file and purge
      xtide-data.

   Disavantages:
    - Casual user might do `apt-get install xtide', try it and
      see an apparently broken package and remove it.

2- Create `xtide' and `xtide-data' with xtide _depending_ on
   xtide-data.

   Advantages:  
    - Casual user might do `apt-get install xtide', try it and
      see a working package.

   Disavantages:
    - Users that want to download data separately would have a
      problem.
    - Users that want to install xtide-data and trim it down (as
      described above) could not purge the package, but would
      need to put the package on hold instead.

3- Create package `xtide' that depends on `xtide-base' and
   `xtide-data'.  Casual users can install `xtide' and have a
   working package.  Others could only install `xtide-base'.

   If I did this, should the `xtide' package be bundled along
   with `xtide-base' and have the same version number?
   (`xtide-data' would have it's own independent version numbers.)

   Should it be a meta-package?

Thanks for your input!

-- 
Peter Galbraith