Hi, On 2 April 2012 18:43, Daniel Martin <[email protected]> wrote: > I'd like to be able to > _easily_ install source code in a predictable location, modify the code, > recompile and install the new package.
In the 1990s the GNU project delegated the job of making a GNU distribution using some non-GNU components to the Debian project. (The GNU project later stopped delegating the job because of a dispute about non-free software distribution policies, which is how we end up with a thread like this one, I believe.) The Debian project developed an Advanced Package Tool, 'apt.' On one of the many unofficial GNU distribution managed with apt, you can do this: $ apt-get build-dep $PROGRAM; $ apt-get source $PROGRAM; $ cd PROGRAM/; $ ./configure; $ make; $ make install; What is not easy about this? :-) As others have mentioned, there are unofficial distributions of GNU that started with Gentoo that use the 'portage' package management system that also makes it easy to install source code in a predictable location, modify the code, recompile and install the new package; additionally, it makes it easy to systematize that process so that eg a single Emacs package can be compiled to integrate tightly with (only) the other packages installed on the local machine. I am aware of HomeBrew, a much more recently started package management system project that works with source code, although it packages free software for a popular proprietary UNIX operating system. Perhaps it has interesting features unavailable in any other source based package manager, but I am not aware of any - or of any other source based package manager popular today. So, while I have a neutral opinion about the GNU project making an official GNU distribution, I personally can think of no reason that a new package management system would be useful to develop :-) Cheers Dave
