Should non-free and contrib packages install to /opt?
Buddha Buck asks:
> Is there any particular reason (besides history and inertia) that
> non-free and contrip packages aren't installed into /opt?
Yes: it was discussed long & hard several years back. The conclusion was
that the only truly scaleable solution was to use a completely flat
structure with "everything" in /usr/{bin,man,lib,include,...} and use the
package system to create package structure. The only exception is X [1].
Debian is an open system so everything that is handled by dpkg *is* part of
(your) debian system. IMO this is a consequence of our social contract.
They are, of course, not part of the OFFICIAL Debian distribution but that
is a different matter.
Cheers,
Kristoffer
[1] I still disagree with treating X files different from other files! It
is a continuing source of confusion for new packages (should xemacs go in
/usr/bin or /usr/X11R6/bin?). IMHO Debian would be *really* nice if all X
binaries/includes/manuals were put with the rest (with the usual
compatibility links /usr/X11R6/bin -> /usr/bin etc.).
--
Kristoffer Høgsbro Rose, phd, prof.associé <http://www.ens-lyon.fr/~krisrose>
addr: LIP, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, 46 Allée d'Italie, F-69364 Lyon 7
phone: +33(0)4 7272 8642, fax +33(0)4 7272 8080 <Kristoffer.Rose@ENS-Lyon.FR>
pgp f-p: A4D3 5BD7 3EC5 7CA2 924E D21D 126B B8E0 <krisrose@{debian,tug}.org>
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