-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 Colin Watson wrote on 08/05/13 11:14: > ... > > So, at Steve Langasek's request, I've been putting together a > proof of concept of a low-level app package installer and > packaging format. Highlights of what it can do so far are: > > ... > > * installs each app to an entirely separate directory > > * entirely declarative: maintainer scripts are forbidden
Do these two entail that an installation/update/removal can be interrupted at any point without corrupting the system? This is, as I understand it, a long-standing problem with deb/dpkg. A PC has a power outage or a kernel panic while a package is installing or updating, and the packaged software becomes unusable, and possibly stymies future package operations too. An interruption like this is much more likely to happen on a phone or tablet, because it's much more often on battery while you're installing something. > ... > > To do, but not in this project: > > * package acquisition While designing session-installer error messages, I was told that apt returns localized error messages but not error codes, making it impractical for a UI wrapper to respond appropriately to different kinds of error (e.g. providing a "Try Again" button only when trying again might actually work). Avoiding this in any new system would be desirable. > * indexing support and other frontend things (i.e. the app store) That will affect the package format. For example, each package providing metadata in multiple languages. > ... > > Is there anything else people can think of that a system like this > needs to consider? > > ... A system that aims for an order of magnitude more applications, than Debian or Ubuntu has packages, should not rely on every package having a unique name. For example, a package should not determine the name of the installation directory itself. Finally (and most bikesheddingly), a system initially aimed at phones and tablets should not be named after something you do with a mouse. Cheers - -- mpt -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.4.12 (GNU/Linux) Comment: Using GnuPG with undefined - http://www.enigmail.net/ iEYEARECAAYFAlGMz9EACgkQ6PUxNfU6ecpWFgCfV9GhyHH95qe/1rZtWCJaNJ/6 3vUAnAzDJiALnaK1bRg525P0yyoomoQS =vMfc -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- -- ubuntu-devel mailing list ubuntu-devel@lists.ubuntu.com Modify settings or unsubscribe at: https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-devel
