Re: [RFC] DEP-6: Meta-Package debian/control field
Rene Engelhard writes:
> On Mon, Dec 21, 2009 at 05:00:35PM +0100, David Paleino wrote:
> > However, seems like on IRC we reached kind of a consensus on the fact
> > that metapackages should use Recommends instead of Depends. I plan to do
> > a mass- bug filing on this issue sooner or later, just need some time to
> > do it :)
>
> What sense does that have? apt-get install openoffice.org installing
> nothing? (Assuming a system has a senseful configuration and has
> the recommends-install thing removed? Ok, OOo is a bad example, let's get a
> better one:
>
> mysql-server or postgresql. On (minimal as you can get) servers you don't
> want to install recommends, and this would break those, too.
> (Yes, they are metapackages)
Given the fact that there is no clear definition what a metapackage is (yes, we
all think we know what it is), the opposite is also true: openoffice.org, mysql-
server, postgresql could equally be thought of not being metapackages and
their Depends are not to be demoted to Recommends. It all boils down to the
maintainer decision what to put in Depends and Recommends, regardless of
whether they thought of their package as being a metapackage or not.
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