[SGVLUG] RPM hell -- why not just change to debian?

[Mike Fedyk]

Emerson, Tom wrote:
>> -----Original Message-----
>> Behalf Of Mike Fedyk
>> Emerson, Tom wrote:
>>     
>
>   
>>> Some cases-in-point
>>>
>>>   -- earlier releases of SuSE installed "locate" as part of
>>>      the "default" selection, new releases don't [...]
>>>   
>>>       
>> Debian based distros handle this well.  They have a replaces: 
>> field so 
>> that when you upgrade the new package is installed, and the old is 
>> removed.
>>     
>
> That's fine, execpt there was no package to replace "locate" --
> they simply stopped installing it as "part of a typical install".
> This is, of course, a particularly obtuse case -- "locate", by
> it's very nature, is similar to microsoft's "fast find" feature
> (pre-indexing files for fast searches) and unless you keep your
> system "on" 24x7, you are likely to run into a performance-sapping
> "scan" shortly after you start up [same as with windows...] so
> I can understand and appreciate why it might not be included
> "by default" anymore.  I happen to like the "locate" command,
> and as I generally keep my systems running all the time, I don't
> run into problems with this [though perhaps I should rework this
> a bit for my laptop as that system tends to be "off" more than it
> is "on" nowadays...]
>   
I wonder why they didn't just throttle the scan to 1 disk hit per second 
or something...
>   
>> My second install from back in 1999 is still 
>> running today and 
>> it has been upgraded from Hamm (2.0) to Slink (2.1) to Woody (3.0) to 
>> Sarge (3.1).  This install has survived all hardware it has been on, 
>> including changing hard drives, and the entire system surrounding it.
>>     
>
> I haven't been as bold with "updates" -- I think most of the time
> I've simply done a full install and manually select packages I
> think I'd like to see or use [and as I mentioned earlier, forget
> that I was going to try them out...]  I think I've done an "upgrade"
> once, and instead of marking the system as "SuSE 8.0", it changed
> my 7.x system to "7.99" :)
>   
Most RPM based distros have trouble with upgrading.  Though it works 
with debian because you only install a debian system once.  That is The 
Way(tm).