Bug#160529: ASK is RFPed

[Robert Millan <zeratul2@wanadoo.es>]

Hi,

On Wed, Oct 01, 2003 at 12:04:21AM -0400, Marco Paganini wrote:
> > Do you refer to /usr/bin/ask.py and such? You can't set these as conffiles,
> > since all stuff in /usr could well be read-only.
> 
> No. This one is immutable. The templates are in fact text files that the
> average user may choose to change. I cheched the FHS and it's not very
> clear to me where I should put those files? /var/lib? Note that they're
> usually copied into the user's home directory for use. We can think of
> them as "skeleton" files, but they may be edited directly.

If they're executables they should be in /bin or /usr/bin, but if they are
editable they can't be in / or /usr hierrachy, so we're at dead end.

The good solution would be to split the "editable" portion of ask.py and put
it into a file that can be edited in another location. An alternative could
be to put ask.py in /etc/ hierrachy and symlink it from /usr/bin/.

> > Btw, I suggest you rename it to /usr/bin/ask. We tend to remove the language
> > extensions such as .pl or .sh when installing stuff in /usr/bin.
> 
> It is strictly necessary? I really don't like having the extension, but
> I fear "ask" is too common a name to be under /usr/bin without causing
> conflict. Another concern is to break existing scripts. Opinions?

Uhm.. I'm not sure. Could you ask this in debian-devel? (and keep me on CC)

> I need to make ask dependent on some kind of MTA. What should I
> use? "Depends: mta" ? Is there anything "virtual" called mta that resolves to
> any of them?

The virtual package provided by all MTAs is "mail-transport-agent", but you
shouldn't depend on virtual packages directly. Instead, depend on your
favourite MTA and fallback to mail-transport-agent, e.g:

  Depends: exim | mail-transport-agent

-- 
Robert Millan

"[..] but the delight and pride of Aule is in the deed of making, and in the
thing made, and neither in possession nor in his own mastery; wherefore he
gives and hoards not, and is free from care, passing ever on to some new work."

 -- J.R.R.T, Ainulindale (Silmarillion)