Re: Binaries with the same name

[Ben Finney <bignose+hates-spam@benfinney.id.au>]

Russ Allbery <rra@debian.org> writes:

> David Paleino <d.paleino@gmail.com> writes:
> > Frank Küster <frank@debian.org> wrote:
> 
> >> /--- Policy 10.1
> >> | Two different packages must not install programs with different
> >> | functionality but with the same filenames. (The case of two
> >> | programs having the same functionality but different
> >> | implementations is handled via "alternatives" or the
> >> | "Conflicts" mechanism.
> >> \---
> 
> > Both programs provide the same basic functionality indeed (i.e.
> > translations), and the implementation is different. Why not using
> > alternatives|Conflicts then? (read as: I can't understand your
> > Policy citation, since it seems you're contradicting yourself).
> 
> I've always read functionality in this context as meaning the API,
> not the general task the program does.

Agreed, but I can certainly see how that confusion arises from the
policy text as it is.

Perhaps a bug report against policy to specify "API" instead of
"implementations"?

-- 
 \       “Know what I hate most? Rhetorical questions.” —Henry N. Camp |
  `\                                                                   |
_o__)                                                                  |
Ben Finney