cleaning up our task packages
I suspect most people don't look at tasksel on a regular basis, but if
it were possible to do a fresh woody install today, here is what you
would see:
x [ ] Advanced Linux Sound Architecture Meta package which depends on sta`x
x [ ] C++ Dev Development in C++ ax
x [ ] C Dev Development in C ax
x [ ] Chinese S Simplified Chinese environment ax
x [ ] Chinese T Traditional Chinese environment ax
x [ ] Database Pg PostgreSQL database ax
x [ ] Debian Devel Debian package development ax
x [ ] Debug Debugging of C, C++, Objective C ax
x [ ] Devel Common Development in various languages ax
x [ ] Dialup Dialup utilities ax
x [ ] Dialup Isdn Dialup utilities (ISDN) ax
x [ ] Dns Server DNS Server ax
x [ ] Doc General documentation ax
x [ ] Fortran Fortran development environment ax
x [ ] Games A selection of games ax
x [ ] German German-speaking environment ax
x [ ] Gnome Apps GNOME applications and utilities ax
x [ ] Gnome Desktop GNOME basic desktop ax
x [ ] Gnome Games GNOME games ax
x [ ] Gnome Net GNOME network applications ax
x [ ] Imap IMAP Server ax
x [ ] Japanese Japanese-speaking environment ax
x [ ] Kde The K Desktop Environment ax
x [ ] Kde Devel The K Desktop Environment develop`x
x [ ] Kdeadmin tools for adminstration written fax
x [ ] Kdegames KDE games collection ax
x [ ] Kdegraphics KDE collection of graphics prograax
x [ ] Kdemultimedia KDE multimedia task ax
x [ ] Kdenetwork KDE Networking Applications ax
x [ ] Kdepim Personal Information Management fax
x [ ] Kdetoys some toys for the KDE ax
x [ ] Kdeutils KDE Utilities Applications ax
x [ ] Koffice KDE Office Suite ax
x [ ] Laptop A selection of tools for laptop uax
x [ ] Newbie Help New user documentation ax
x [ ] News Server USENET News Server ax
x [ ] Objc Dev Development in Objective C ax
x [ ] Parallel Computing Dev Packages for development of paralax
x [ ] Parallel Computing Node Libraries for parallel computing ax
x [ ] Polish Polish-speaking environment ax
x [ ] Python Python script development environax
x [ ] Python Bundle Full distribution of Python ax
x [ ] Python Dev Full Python development environmeax
x [ ] Python Web Python web application developmen`x
x [ ] Samba Samba SMB server ax
x [ ] Science Basic tools for scientific work ax
x [ ] Sgml SGML and XML authoring and editinax
x [ ] Sgml Dev SGML and XML development environmax
x [ ] Spanish Spanish environment ax
x [ ] Tcltk Running Tcl/Tk applications ax
x [ ] Tcltk Dev Developing Tcl/Tk applications ax
x [ ] Tex TeX/LaTeX environment ax
x [ ] Webserver Roxen Web server (Roxen) ax
x [ ] Webserver Roxen2 Web server (Roxen) ax
x [ ] X Window System X Window System (complete) ax
x [ ] X Window System Core X Window System (core components)`x
Notice a few things about this list:
1. It is long. More than 2x as long as the list in potato, much longer than
one or even two screens. It is approaching a length that most hurried
people will probably not bother reading. I'll bet that back in the early
days, dselect's list was about this long, and the thought, frankly, scares
me..
2. It is filled with junk. Task packages are supposed to deliniate _tasks_:
things one would want to use a computer for. They are supposed to make
decisions _for_ people who cannot be bothered to make decisions for
themselves[1]. So why do we have three sets of games, two desktops,
and a slew of different programming languages all listed?
We need to trim this list down, and I propose an objective criteria
that can go into policy, as follows:
%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<
2.3.1.1 Task packages
---------------------
Task packages are packages whose names are prefixed with `task-'.
Typically they are empty metapackages that merely depend on a collection
of other packages.
These packages are designed to enable users to set up their system to
perform a specific task, with a minimum of work. Task packages are the
embodyment of statements like "I want a ..." or "I want to ...". For
example, "I want a web server" (task-web-server), or "I want to write
programs" (task-programming), and if such a statement cannot be resonably
constructed to explain the purpose of the task, a task package is not
appropriate and should not exist in Debian.
Task packages must each delinate a specific task, and no two task packages
should offer the same, or effectively the same task. (So there can only
be one task package for a X desktop, a web server, or program development.)
Moreover, task packages should not be present for tasks that the standard
Debian system can perform by default (so task-[emacs-]editor is right out).
Task packages must not conflict either directly, or indirectly (this means
that the dependancies of any two task packages must not conflict).
%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<%<
I'd expect that if this were adopted into policy, it would eliminate a whole
pile of tasks that clearly violate it, although I'm sure many of them would
be fought long and hard; at least once we get a definition in policy, we
will have a standard to aim for (and something to fight over ;-P.
The resulting list would look something like:
x [ ] Chinese Chinese environment ax
x [ ] Database Pg PostgreSQL database ax
x [ ] Debian Devel Debian package development ax
x [ ] Dialup Dialup utilities ax
x [ ] Dns Server DNS Server ax
x [ ] Doc General documentation ax
x [ ] Games A selection of games ax
x [ ] German German-speaking environment ax
x [ ] Imap IMAP Server ax
x [ ] Japanese Japanese-speaking environment ax
x [ ] Kde The K Desktop Environment ax
x [ ] Laptop A selection of tools for laptop uax
x [ ] Newbie Help New user documentation ax
x [ ] News Server USENET News Server ax
x [ ] Polish Polish-speaking environment ax
x [ ] Samba Samba SMB server ax
x [ ] Science Basic tools for scientific work ax
x [ ] Sgml SGML and XML authoring and editinax
x [ ] Spanish Spanish environment ax
x [ ] Tex TeX/LaTeX environment ax
x [ ] X Window System X Window System (complete) ax
Which doesn't include some very important tasks (task-web-server
and task-programming come to mind), but is a large improvment from
what we have now. And almost even fits on one screen.
--
see shy jo
[1] Which is why most of us will never use them..
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