On Tue, 13 Jun 2000, you wrote:
> On Tue, 13 Jun 2000 06:02:50 -0400, you wrote:
>
> >I have a question on packages that are on Linux. Is there a web site that
> >gives details of what the package is and etc?? I would like to be able to
> >know what to install and what I don't need. I think I am wasting space by
> >taking everything that is offered in the install.
> >This way I will know what is what as to everyday use of Linux.
> >
> >Thanks
> >Robert F. Trettel
> ================================
> Tue, 13 Jun 2000 15:42:19
>
> I had the same Question Robert, all those strange names are quite
> meaningless unless you already have experience...I found that the
> descriptions in the KDE package tool are very helpful..
>
> Click on a package name and a description shows up in the
> right hand panel...Providing you have a linux loaded of course....If
> you have the space though ,load it all and then you can search through
> it and learn about it for next installation...or any thing that you
> don't need you can trim out...
>
> If you don't load all the development material you cannot
> manage to make and install some other RPM downloaded later. or do
> compiling and the like.
>
> the site http://mandrakeuser.org/ has been big time helpful to me.
> Olly P
> Biloxi
I have also been disconcerted, at first, by the overwhelming amount of
packages I found in the Linux distributions (RH first, then Suse and finally
Mandrake). I feared that it would invade my hd and that I would never be in
control of such a number of programs. It would take a whole live just to
understand what they were meant for, and in a little time, much shorter than
the amount of time I'd need in order to be back in command of my computer, new
versions would become available... A maelstrom of programs was going to drag me
away...
Things went rather differntly, though, and I would like to reassure both Robert
and Olly, and all those who feel the same disconfort with packages.
First, through utilities such as kpackages or rpmdrake, one can explore the
packages installed on ones machine, and have a little explanation of what they
are supposed to do.
Secondly, as time goes by, you get invlved in properly installing licq, or
configuring imwheel, or tying to understand whether wine is able to execute
something alse as sol.exe. And you just forget the packages problem. Better: as
Bambi says, you feel lucky when you discover that something you 'd like to test
is already installed on your computer.
As for pruning away the pakages that you do not need... Well, just think that
you will do it one day. The idea that it is not impossible to do it (better,
that through kpackages it would be very easy to do it) is very reassuring:
than, you don't really need to do it . Just think taht you can. It's largely
enough.
Something would be very useful, though: a dictionary, or encyclopedia on line,
that would allow one to understand such expression as "gui", or "api", or what
a program like "Doom" is meant to do... But may-be it exists. Has anybody got
any idea about this?
--
Piero
------------------------------
Dr Piero Caracciolo
Ecole Normale Superieure
...humani nihil ...
