Why is it that ... ?
in [Slackware]
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From: Aaron W. Hsu on 30 Jan 2010 19:43 On Sat, 30 Jan 2010 17:50:38 -0500, Sheldon Doofus <sheldon(a)doofus.ca> wrote: > Why is it that you almost always > have to compile from source unless you get a package put together by > a third party? Often, but not always, I think Opera still builds Slackware packages. :-) Aaron W. Hsu -- A professor is one who talks in someone else's sleep.
From: Robby Workman on 31 Jan 2010 13:50 On 2010-01-30, Sheldon Doofus <sheldon(a)doofus.ca> wrote: > Why is it that Slackware is never among the distributions listed > when one is downloading a new piece of software? This one's easy: the provider doesn't wish to provide a package for Slackware. > It used to be. But not anymore. Why is it that you almost always > have to compile from source unless you get a package put together by > a third party? See above. > And why is it that when you compile a new package from source for > slackware it almost invariably fails? It doesn't. This is called "projection" - the fact that it fails for *you* has zero bearing on the rest of the world. > Why is this? YDIW. -RW
From: Michael Black on 31 Jan 2010 17:39 On Sun, 31 Jan 2010, Robby Workman wrote: >> And why is it that when you compile a new package from source for >> slackware it almost invariably fails? > > > It doesn't. This is called "projection" - the fact that it fails > for *you* has zero bearing on the rest of the world. > > More likely a lack of understanding, so the previous poster doesn't know why it fails. Since "compile" to me before Linux was either dealing with my own software or listings I've typed in from magazines (yes, that far back), it always meant having to fix something, either something I hadn't done right in the first place or something I'd typed in wrong. It then came as a real surprise when I started using Linux to go after things that weren't included in Slackware, and then wham, the program is there, there were no errors, and it was so fast. That's such a contradictory thing, "if it works, then why keep compiling it?". But it's not been a horrible process, so if there's something I want that isn't in Slackware, I tend to just compile the source. That said, I still haven't gotten Audacity going, things it needed that I was missing. But that's a different case, it's not some general failure of the compile but extra things needed that I haven't bothered following through with. But if I knew nothing, then I sure wouldn't be able to tell the difference between an error from a typo and an error because I need something else. Michael
From: notbob on 31 Jan 2010 18:41 On 2010-01-31, Michael Black <et472(a)ncf.ca> wrote: > That said, I still haven't gotten Audacity going, things it needed that > I was missing. Not difficult, jes confusing. I got audacity up and running with all features. Here's an outline of the pkgs and the their relative dependencies, according to Slacky: audacity celt jack-audio-connection kit libirdf raptor ladspa libmspack libsamplerate libsndfile twolame wxwidgets I got away with loading all pkgs under audacity in one dir and installing them all at once with pkgtool. After they were all installed, I installed the main audacity pkg itself, alone. I think all these pkgs are available on slacky,eu, a monster resource. http://www.slacky.eu/aadm/pkgs/index.php?ver=13 If I had to compile anything (I forget), it was only one pkg and I used slackbuilds.org. Whatever, both resources were flawless and audacity works like a charm with all the features, even the more obscure ones. ;) nb
From: Mike Jones on 1 Feb 2010 09:36
Responding to Robby Workman: [...] >> And why is it that when you compile a new package from source for >> slackware it almost invariably fails? > > > It doesn't. This is called "projection" - the fact that it fails for > *you* has zero bearing on the rest of the world. Confirmed. Of the various distros I've played with, Slack has the best "it worked" ratio by far. On the odd occasion something can't find an expected lib or other resource, I usually get all the info I need to know what it is I need to do to fix that minor problem too. (Virtually all Slacker-created slack.pkgs I've ever used "just work" too.) Maybe the reason there aren't as many pre-packaged things for Slack as other distros is that installing from source is so much easier with Slack? -- *=( http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/ *=( For all your UK news needs. |