Re: cdimage.debian.org how-to? what gives? xxx
On 20140321_194133, Steve Litt of Troubleshooters.Com wrote:
> On Fri, 21 Mar 2014 16:38:25 -0600
> Paul E Condon <pecondon@mesanetworks.net> wrote:
>
> > Over the years since Potato, I have noticed that while each new
<snip>
> > exists.
>
> I've noticed this too. I always need to struggle, navigate and wander to
> download the right ISO image. If I ever wanted to install
> Debian Testing (which I don't), I have no idea how to do
> that. Occasionally I don't know I downloaded the wrong image until I
> boot the DVD made with it.
Debian has a tradition of valuing highly the idea of never having to do
a complete new install in order to move to the next release. The name
for this feature has drifted about but is currently 'dist-upgrade'.
To move to Jessie from Wheezy, one follows a sequence of steps that
prepares wheezy for dist-upgrade, then edits one's sources.list to
replace every occurrence of 'wheezy' with 'jessie', then actually doing
dist-upgrade using apt-get, aptitude, or whatever.... This drill, in
the hands of a skilled user, can be executed very quickly, but ...
in practice, for me ... not so much. I don't claim to be skilled.
> My other Debian confusion is all the program sources and how to
> enable/disable them. I know of no web page that explains the whats,
My approach is: Every uncommented line in sources.list calls out a
repository, (primary, or mirrored) that is searched for packages. If
you don't want to search a particular repository, don't include it,
or comment it. During a dist-upgrade one needs only lines for the new
release, being installed. Searching for old release packages is a
waste of time and compute cycles. The details drift over time as
the internet changes, and grows.
> where's and why's of this. Fortunately, I'm in several LUGs with
> Debian-knowledgeable people, so if I get in a bind, I can get help.
>
> Some time, after I truly understand the ins and outs of Debian
> versions, downloads, backports, and the like, I'll write a document to
> explain it, clearly, in one place, for the new Debian user.
I sense that there is a lot of diversity of opinion about the details.
I think you will find it hard to satisfy holders of all opinions, but
it is a worthy goal, IMHO.
Cheers,
--
Paul E Condon
pecondon@mesanetworks.net
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