Re: Installer (WAS: RE: next net release preview)

[Earnie Boyd <earnie_boyd at yahoo dot com>]

--- "Parker, Ron" <rdparker@butlermfg.org> wrote:
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Chris Faylor [mailto:cgf@cygnus.com]
> Sent: Thursday, February 24, 2000 10:57 AM
> To: Kazuhiro Fujieda
> Cc: cygwin-developers@sourceware.cygnus.com
> Subject: Re: next net release preview
> 
> <snip>
> >I think DJ has already said that we don't have an installer and are
> >hoping that someone may write one.
> 
> >It's a little disconcerting to see that people keep sending in nifty
> >suggestions for new things to do but nobody, besides Mumit, is
> >volunteering to do any of the work.
> 
> *steps forward*
> 
> I may not know much about implementing a POSIX compatibility layer like
> CYGWIN or about fixing broken compiler internals, but when it comes to
> installation routines I have spent far too long working on them. [Not by
> choice :^) ]
> 
> The least I can do is volunteer to work on one for the new net release.
> This will be an evening only sort of thing as I don't see my employer paying
> me to work on it.
> 
> So, two questions:
> 
> (1) What is the target timeframe for having something created?
> 
> (2) What is expected/needed of an installer?
> 
> My personal thoughts are that long term I would love to port RPM for CYGWIN
> and Windows so that it plugged into the standard Windows "Add/Remove
> Software" mechanism.  But this is a long term goal that I had been waiting
> to do until after the next (this) net release.
> 
> So my question is what would you the developers like to see and what do you
> think would be beneficial to the general public?

Not that I'm promoting RPM, but it's already been ported.  Check the cygwin
archives.  Now, I would prefer to see something of an autoinstall script to go
with the automake/autoconf group.  Autoinstall would use m4 and gawk as the
scripting language and use a /etc/autoinstall.conf file for the filesystem
hierarchy and list of installed packages coupled with a autoinstall.in file in
the package to create a map of package dependencies.

The details need to be worked out but this is my general idea.

Comments?
KISS,

=====
---
   Earnie Boyd: <mailto:earnie_boyd@yahoo.com>
            __Cygwin: POSIX on Windows__
Cygwin Newbies: <http://www.freeyellow.com/members5/gw32/index.html>
           __Minimalist GNU for Windows__
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