Re: Packaging Manual vs. dpkg Programmers' Manual
Hi,
>>"Ian" == Ian Jackson <ian@chiark.greenend.org.uk> writes:
Ian> However, the erstwhile dpkg programmers' manual was exactly what it
Ian> said: it was the documentation for dpkg and dselect. It described how
Ian> the programs worked and how they should be used, rather than how to
Ian> produce a Debian package.
Not quite. The version numbering chapter, for example, is
required for anyone packaging for Debian, as are other part of the
document. While they may have started life as documentation of the
packaging system, I think now they are also, ummm, part of a
contract, if you will, that is one obeys the documentation one shall
have a Debian package at the end.
Ian> When I have finished sorting out the code in dpkg and start
Ian> considering new code, I will probably want to take the current
Ian> Packaging Manual back into the dpkg package, and rename it back.
You can certainly copy the document, and extend it as you see
fit. However, I think that we do need a manual that documents how one
packages Debian packages, and the current packaging manual is a good
place to start.
Ian> When I do this I'll go through it and find all the parts that are not
Ian> documentation for dpkg, dselect, or their file formats, and remove
Ian> them into another file or document, so that they can be incorporated
Ian> into other manuals such as the policy manual.
Good. I was intending to do this, but suddenly my work load
has increased a lot, so I may find this too much to undertake. I
think that the interfaces should be considered policy -- we need to
be able to have some stable set of commands and invocations that one
uses in the rules file or otherwise in the process of creating a
Debian package, and these should always remain policy.
Ian> At this stage, I'm giving people a heads-up about this plan. Also, it
Ian> seems likely that there might be some *ahem* discussion about it,
Ian> which I'd like to get out of the way ...
;-)
manoj
--
"Whip me. Beat me. Make me maintain AIX." (By Stephan Zielinski)
Manoj Srivastava <srivasta@acm.org> <http://www.golden-gryphon.com/>
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