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Re: How to install X-Chat in five hours (or more)



Frederik Rousseau <fred@cmelectronics.be> writes:

>> I really think aptitude should only show end user packages with
>> decent, readable, localised names ("Apache Web Server", "x Chat (IRC
>> Client)", "Infrared Control for XMMS"). At the moment the user is
>> completely overwhelmed by the list of packages, which is not helped by
>> the fact that each one comes with a dozen or more libraries,
>> extensions, and so forth.
>
> Some people like Ian Hickson don't want to see package names like libgtk2.0. 
> But _I_ want to see this, I am sys admin and want to know exactly what I am 
> putting on _my_ systems.
>
> Just one of the reasons why I like GNU/Linux ... I know what I'm doing!
>
> Anyway, does this mean we need something like a GNU/Linux Debian and a 
> GNU/Linux Debian For Dummies showing only icons?

It probably means there should be a configuration option in aptitude
to hide sections like devel, libdevel, libs, and interpreters, since
end users typically don't care (and 90% of the time I find myself not
caring, too).  Perhaps suggesting to new users that they look in the
"tasks" section of aptitude would help reduce the package overload,
too.  I don't think we need to abandon the power of our current
infrastructure, just have ways of making it less visible for people
who don't want it.

-- 
David Maze         dmaze@debian.org      http://people.debian.org/~dmaze/
"Theoretical politics is interesting.  Politicking should be illegal."
	-- Abra Mitchell



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