Re: Exploring package interrelationships
On Mon 15 Apr 2019 at 08:50:12 (-0500), Richard Owlett wrote:
> On 04/15/2019 03:39 AM, Peter Wiersig wrote:
> > Richard Owlett <rowlett@cloud85.net> writes:
> > > Long term goal: *personal* definition of a minimalist Debian
> > >
> > > current goal: grok how packages interact
> >
> > http://www.macfreek.nl/memory/Dependency_Graph_Debian_Packages
> > TLDR:
> > $ apt-cache dotty mate-desktop > dependency-graph.dot
> > $ dot -Tpng dependency-graph.dot
>
> After I posted I found a reference using Graphiz with "apt-cache dotty"
> I haven't read the documentation yet.
>
> I tried you example and got a command not found at second line.
> I found a man page for "dot" then went looking for a package to
> provide it -- found/installed xdot.
I'm not sure we need the blow by blow account.
> Using "dot -Tps dependency-graph.dot > owl.ps" I got a displayable,
> if not readable, graph. There was a warning in what I had read about
> "dotty" about viewablity issues if the graph was too complex. Suspect
> that is problem.
Add -o APT::Cache::GivenOnly=1 to the commandline, and you'll get
a much smaller graph. I haven't figured out why python and
python-requests are missng from the graph, or is this a stretch/buster
difference. (I'm comparing the graph with the Packages entry:
Package: mate-desktop
Version: 1.16.2-2
Architecture: amd64
Replaces: mate-desktop-gnome
Depends: hicolor-icon-theme, libmate-desktop-2-17 (>= 1.10.0),
mate-desktop-common (= 1.16.2-2), python, python-requests, libatk1.0-0
(>= 1.12.4), libc6 (>= 2.4), libcairo-gobject2 (>= 1.10.0), libcairo2
(>= 1.2.4), libgdk-pixbuf2.0-0 (>= 2.22.0), libglib2.0-0 (>= 2.28.0),
libgtk-3-0 (>= 3.0.0), libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.14.0), libpangocairo-1.0-0
(>= 1.14.0), libstartup-notification0 (>= 0.2), libxrandr2
Recommends: mate-user-guide
Breaks: mate-desktop-gnome
[edited].)
> > That either creates files named after the input or at least shows a
> > graphic of the package you specified.
> >
> > I think I remember and older planet.debian.org post where someone else
> > had done similar. Have not found it in a very short research session.
> >
> >
> > Alternatively explore interactive with aptitude when you disable the
> > solver there and pick the resulting installation by hand, and decide
> > which suggest/recommend you follow, and which non-essential package you
> > might even not install.
>
> I can't parse that sentence. By context I suspect I can do some
> searching which will clarify.
Yes, it's often difficult to follow explanations of GUI processes
because they're interactive by nature. Sometimes a video is more
help than written instructions. The modern world …
Cheers,
David.
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