Redoing tasksel using debtags

[Enrico Zini]

Hi,

Let's paste this IRC conversation, which I find enlightening:

  SynrG> hm.  in debian jr's case, where the metapackages do absolutely
	 nothing except depend on the components, and those categories
	 are so inadequate ... i wonder if i should just go to an
	 entirely debtags-based install approach?
 enrico> SynrG: that'd be interesting, but I don't know of debtags
         integration with install tools
 enrico> although you can always do 'debtags install "tag expression"'
 enrico> but that's a bit rough
  SynrG> enrico: then perhaps we should be pushing at the edge?
  SynrG> enrico: use the 'rough' solution for now
  SynrG> which will, i hope, drive the development of better tools
 enrico> SynrG: that's an interesting option.
 enrico> uhm
 enrico> think think think
 enrico> with tags getting into the Packages file, we have an
         opportunity to get a strictly controlled set of tags
 enrico> and we have the data without needing to download stuff
 enrico> so one could really do a tasksel replacement which takes data
         from Debtags
  SynrG> the weakness so far is the weakness in junior tagging ...
 enrico> GOSH!  We're ready for that already and I didn't notice!
  SynrG> the rest is just a SMOP
 enrico> looks like
  SynrG> what sparked my attention is a bug filed against junior-doc
         saying my 'tasksel method' doesn't work
 enrico> mind if I paste this short IRC conversation into the
         debtags-devel list?
 enrico> I can Cc you if you want
  SynrG> tasksel was my only fully-automated & non-hacky way to install jr
  SynrG> so i need a replacement
  SynrG> yes, please do
  SynrG> you can cite the junior-doc bug too
 enrico> Bug#?
  SynrG>  #346120
  SynrG> i need it resolved for etch
  SynrG> the one issue that worries me is alternatives
  SynrG> how do i express alternative priorities with debtags alone?
  SynrG> a simple solution is just don't
  SynrG> if installing a package would cause a removal of an
         alternative, don't install it
  SynrG> enrico: actually, i should just join debtags-devel for a while
 enrico> SynrG: i can't easily understand the point with alternatives
 enrico> SynrG: can you make an example?
  SynrG> junior-writing depends on emacs21 | emacsen, so if the system
	 has no emacsen, it will install emacs21.  but if it already has
	 one, it will do nothing, even if it isn't emacs21
  SynrG> so long as it provides emacsen
  SynrG> and actually, that doesn't conform to my flavours idea (at
         least not the plain/gnome/kde division)
 enrico> Oh, I see.  that one can't do with debtags
  SynrG> the only other alternative is in junior-games-text
 enrico> In debtags when you say emacs21, emacs21 comes in
  SynrG> moon-buggy | moon-buggy-esd
  SynrG> that's a plain (or KDE) vs. gnome thing
  SynrG> i don't know.  trying to think ...
  SynrG> consider these as special cases, each one tagged
  SynrG> by unions and intersections of tags, we ought to be able to do
         the same thing
  SynrG> and then if there are conflicts, use the normal conflict
         resolution process, making the admin choose
  SynrG> so long as there's no 'depends' relationship, it will be
         flexible
  SynrG> that's the weakness of metas

In short, the news is: all the data are in place to write a tasksel
replacement using debtags.

Ideas for making a better tasksel using debtags?


Ciao,

Enrico

-- 
GPG key: 1024D/797EBFAB 2000-12-05 Enrico Zini <enrico at debian.org>
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