> From: "James Courtier-Dutton"
> > We're just about to take VFX Forth for Linux to Beta stage.
> > Coming from the Windows world, I'm fed up with the Linux
> > installers! The rpm and deb system is fine for distros and the
> > like, but hopelessly inadequate for third party apps. After
>
> Why do you think that?
> .rpm and .deb are fine for installs.
Oh, reely? The long answer will appear appear in the next
release of my Linux development notes, " A compiler writer's
guide to Linux", when ample spare time permits.
The short answer is that Linux for Intel IA32/64 is not an O/S,
but a family of platforms with a varying degree of application
binary compatibility. The theme song is "Who knows where the
libs goes ..." and went and which libs and ... so in the end you
issue not one, but five installers all containing the same
binaries!
1) rpm-32
2) rpm-64
3) deb-32
4) deb-64
5) Some tarball
And when I say it's ridiculous, I'm attacked by various
adherents of minorly-different warring Protestant sects. You're
right, I am feeling crabby.
> No messing about with any GUI during install, it just installs as it
> should, like any other .deb or .rpm.
> All this strange windows stuff, expecting to ask users questions
> during install, is all totally unnecessary.
The only questions our single Windows installer (works on *all*
Windows from 95 onwards) asks are:
1) license key
2) where do you want it?
> .deb and .rpm, done correctly are great, because they do both a clean
> install and clean uninstall. 3rd party install programs are mostly done badly,
Which ones have have you tested? Why were they bad, apart from
not being rpms or debs? I'm interested.
Stephen
--
Stephen Pelc, stephen@???
MicroProcessor Engineering Ltd - More Real, Less Time
133 Hill Lane, Southampton SO15 5AF, England
tel: +44 (0)23 8063 1441, fax: +44 (0)23 8033 9691
web:
http://www.mpeforth.com - free VFX Forth downloads
