XDG-APP for software development

[Alexander Larsson]

On tor, 2016-04-28 at 06:38 -0500, Daniel Espinosa wrote:
> Is it possible to reuse OSTree Sdk, create a branch, make it
> read/write and use it as a place where you can install your
> dependencies.

Its possible to create a new runtime based on a previous one. This is
how e.g. the gnome runtime is built from the freedesktop runtime. 

However, it is not something regular users should do. Creating a
runtime is technically equivalent to creating your own distro (a distro
fork in this case) and you'd be doing full-time distro-style security
maintainance instead of working on your app. 

So, don't do that. The idea with xdg-app is that you bundle
dependencies with the *app*, not create your own runtimes. We want a
very small set of well maintained runtimes.

> Is it possible to use xdg-app to distribute libraries? A kind of
> plugin to Sdk, where authors of libraries, like me, is able to
> distribute new versions to develop against.

As a library author, you should strive to make it easy for your
downstream users to bundle your library. Maybe ship an example xdg-app-
builder json snippet to show how it can look.

> 
> pp instances, which is
> not possible, so we need some kind of portal that allows builder to
> launch such recursive instances.

> Is that possible or planning? Should be great for any one using a box
> requiring not just develop, but have an stable system for day to day
> work. Like me, I'm using Debian, and may consider Red Hat EL, to do
> my day work, as stable environment, but I'm unable to use jhbuild. I
> would not re-consider to go to Ubuntu 16.04, I want to be away if it,
> but need some good alternative. No Fedora, I've tested and makes my
> system unstable, non-continuous environment, because I have to update
> 6 to 8 months later, and I need some thing with more time, but
> allowing to develop upstream on libgda and GXml.

Yeah, we want to do this eventually. gnome-software can already (i
think) build apps in xdg-app sandboxes and launch them there, its just
problematic when gnome-builder itself is sandboxed.

Unfortunately a lot of other stuff has come up recently that I've been
working on, so I have not really had time to work on the portals.

-- 
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 Alexander Larsson                                            Red Hat, Inc 
       alexl at redhat.com            alexander.larsson at gmail.com 
He's an otherworldly arachnophobic dwarf from the 'hood. She's a 
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places. They fight crime!