Re: Synaptic icons - where defined/explained?

[Richard Owlett <rowlett@cloud85.net>]

On 12/26/2016 9:56 PM, David Wright wrote:
> On Mon 26 Dec 2016 at 14:10:16 (-0600), Richard Owlett wrote:
> > On 12/26/2016 2:02 PM, Brad Rogers wrote:
> > > On Mon, 26 Dec 2016 13:46:15 -0600
> > > Richard Owlett <rowlett@cloud85.net> wrote:
> > >
> > > Hello Richard,
> > >
> > > > The only repository it has ever seen is DVD 1 of 13 of Debian
> > > > 8.6.0 ;!
> > >
> > > An idea occurs to me;
> > >
> > > Check where those "new" packages came from.  I suspect they're from the
> > > last DVD you added to your repo database.
> >
> > The universe of discourse is a specific set of Debian 8.6.0 dvds.
>
> So when you run aptitude, is the first entry
>
> --- Upgradable Packages ( )
>
> and, if so, what number is in parentheses?
>
> Also if so, what do you see when you select this item?
> (ie press return on this item, then ↓ and return,
> repeating until you reach actual package names.)
> If you do reach a list of package names, with an appearance like so:
>
> --\ Upgradable Packages (1)
>    --\ video - Utilities to record, view, edit, and stream video files (1)
>      --\ main - The main Debian archive (1)
> i     get-iplayer                                   2.94-1         2.97-1
>
> what packages does it want to upgrade, and from which version to which?
>
> (It would be nice to have some concrete examples of what's being discussed.)
>
> Cheers,
> David.

I can't give any info from the particular box in use at the start 
of this thread. I has developed some strange, apparently hardware 
related, that prevents me from doing a clean Debian install using 
my normal preseed.cfg . It no longer has a functional Debian.

However I have another box displaying the same symptoms. But I do 
not know from how many DVDs of Debian 8.6.0 packages were installed.

When running aptitude it reports:
<begin quote>
aptitude 0.6.11
--- Installed Packages (869)
--- Not Installed Packages (41553)
--- Virtual Packages (5124)
--- Tasks (216)
</end quote>

Synaptic shows >> 200 packages with the star in box icon.

There is one more data-point. Before the first box went into 
meltdown I had run a install using the first entry on the 
installer's menu. I showed none of the "star in box" icons. I'm 
beginning to suspect these aberrant "star in box" icons revolve 
around my choice of which packages to load with my preseed.cfg 
file. I've got a full morning's work ahead of me. More later.