Re: Installing Recommends by default

[Reinhard Tartler <siretart@debian.org>]

Frank Küster <frank@debian.org> writes:

>>> What's the problem with lsb-release?
>>
>> $ apt-cache show lsb-release | grep Rec
>> Recommends: lsb, apt
>> $ apt-cache show lsb | grep Dep
>> Depends: lsb-core, lsb-graphics, lsb-cxx, lsb-desktop, lsb-qt4
>> $
>>
>> That makes for some rather hefty packages pulled in via this Recommends
>> line.
>
> I see.  I had the impression that there is a consensus that our tools
> should install Recommends by default in lenny.  If that is the only bug
> that really causes a problem in this respect, why not increase it's
> severity?  Chris, what do you think about it?

I think this example shows that installing Recommends by default alone
is hardly a solution which serves the majority of users. I think that we
also need a blacklist (or policy or however you want to call it) of
packages in addition. Frontends like apt-get would consult that local
policy when considering to install a "recommended" package.

Debian can then still decide to ship an example local policy which
e.g. prevents the "lsb" package to be installed despite being
recommended by lsb-release.

-- 
Gruesse/greetings,
Reinhard Tartler, KeyID 945348A4