On Jun 2, 2011 4:41 PM, "Paul Johnson" <pauljohn32@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> I was using RedHat/Fedora for along time, then Ubuntu, now Debian.
> I'm not new in Linux, just Debian. And I'm still having trouble
> understanding some of the terminology.
>
> I want to run the stable distribution--Squeeze--except I need newer
> versions of some key programs I use in my work, like LyX and R. And
> since the kernel included with Squeeze crashes when I unplug the USB
> headset, I need to run a newer kernel that has a patch for that
> problem. (I'm afraid of testing because it does not appear it ever
> pauses for a "snapshot." If Debian testing had "freeze points" like
> "Fedora 14" or "Ubuntu 11.04" or such, I would probably run testing.
> But testing never pauses for a mostly working snapshot. Right?)
>
> I've followed discussion on this in here and in the web, some people
> suggest a pinning setup, some people suggest waiting for
> debian-backports to introduce the updated versions of programs, and
> some people suggested setting the repositories for Debian Wheezy (same
> as testing at the moment, right?) to get the applications from there,
> and just allow apt (or synaptic, somehow different from apt in
> dependency management?) to just take what is required to run the new
> version.
>
> I've experimented quite a bit with this, and have not yet found a
> satisfactory plan. If I temporarily enable the Wheezy repositories
> and install new versions of things, and then disable Wheezy
> repositories, then I don't get security or other updates on the
> testing plan. If I re-enable Wheezy repositories, then the proposed
> update list includes almost all packages, not just the ones I
> specifically installed from Wheezy.
>
> I *think* pinning might be the right way to fix this, but I have not
> found a configuration that would install updates from Wheezy when I
> want them and take them from Squeeze when I don't. For example,
> Squeeze still has the two editions of tcl and tk, with names like
> tcl8.4 and tcl8.5, whereas Wheezy updates want to remove the 8.4
> editions and just go with 8.5. I use some applications that will not
> work if that happens.
>
jaqque.sbih.org/kplug/apt-pinning.html