[packagekit] packagekit Debian backend has issues.

dE . de.techno at gmail.com
Fri Oct 7 06:14:46 PDT 2011


Hi.

I was looking forward twards a simple graphical package manager for the 
very end user (Mac/Win migrants), since Ubuntu's software center isn't 
available, I decided to use package kit.

It appears that the Debian frontend of packagekit isn't at the right 
state, the search results were very wrong using the GTK frontend. I used 
pkcon to get some sample output -

Search string -- pkcon --filter=gui search details browser

Result:
Available       alevt-1:1.6.2-4.amd64                       X11 
Teletext/Videotext browser
Available       awn-applets-python-core-0.4.0-4.all         A collection 
of applets for Awn, written in python
Installed       banshee-extension-liveradio-2.2.0-1.all     LiveRadio 
extension for Banshee
Available       betaradio-1.3-1.amd64                       Internet 
radio of Taiwan
Available       cairo-dock-quick-browser-plugin-2.3.0~3-2.amd64    
Cairo-dock - Quick browser plug-in
Available       comix-4.0.4-1.all                           GTK Comic 
Book Viewer
Installed       deskbar-applet-2.32.0-1+b2.amd64            universal 
search and navigation bar for GNOME
Available       epiphany-browser-3.0.4-1.amd64              Intuitive 
GNOME web browser
Available       epiphany-browser-data-3.0.4-1.all           Data files 
for the GNOME web browser
Available       epiphany-extensions-3.0.0-3.amd64           Extensions 
for Epiphany web browser
Available       file-browser-applet-0.6.6-1.amd64           browse and 
open files on your computer from the GNOME panel
Available       fsviewer-0.2.5-6.1.amd64                    A NeXT 
FileViewer lookalike
Available       fsviewer-icons-1.0-5.all                    icons for 
fsviewer to make it look more like the NeXT FileViewer
Available       geeqie-1:1.0-9.amd64                        image viewer 
using GTK+
Available       geeqie-common-1:1.0-9.all                   data files 
for Geeqie
Available       geeqie-gps-1:1.0-9.amd64                    image viewer 
using GTK+ (with support for GPS maps)
Available       gimp-2.6.11-3+b2.amd64                      The GNU 
Image Manipulation Program
Installed       gnome-core-1:2.30+11.amd64                  The GNOME 
Desktop Environment -- essential components
Available       googlizer-0.3-3.amd64                       utility to 
search Google via your GNOME menu/panel
Installed       gthumb-3:2.13.1-1.amd64                     an image 
viewer and browser
Installed       gthumb-data-3:2.13.1-1.all                  an image 
viewer and browser - arch-independent files
Available       gtkcookie-0.4-5.amd64                       editor for 
cookie files
Installed       gucharmap-1:3.0.1-1.amd64                   Unicode 
character picker and font browser
Available       kcheckgmail-0.6.0-1+b1.amd64                A Gmail 
notifier-like notifier for KDE
Available       kde-plasma-desktop-5:70.amd64               KDE Plasma 
Desktop and minimal set of applications
Available       kde-plasma-netbook-5:70.amd64               KDE Plasma 
Netbook and minimal set of applications
Available       kdevelop-4:4.2.2-1.amd64                    integrated 
development environment for KDE
Available       kdevelop-data-4:4.2.2-1.all                 data files 
for the KDevelop IDE
Available       kdevelop-dev-4:4.2.2-1.amd64                development 
files for the KDevelop IDE
Available       klipper-4:4.6.5-3.amd64                     clipboard 
manager
Available       kpartsplugin-20110606-1.amd64               
Netscape-compatible plugin to embed KDE file-viewers into browser
Available       libgd-tools-2.0.36~rc1~dfsg-5.1+b1.amd64    GD command 
line tools and example code
Available       libgdl-1-common-2.30.1-1.all                GNOME 
DevTool libraries - common files
Available       libgdl-3-common-3.0.2-1.all                 GNOME 
DevTool libraries - common files
Available       mythbrowser-0.24.1+fixes20110725-0.0.amd64    Small web 
browser module for MythTV
Available       mythnetvision-0.24.1+fixes20110725-0.0.amd64    Plugin 
for watching internet content
Available       mythnetvision-data-0.24.1+fixes20110725-0.0.all    
Plugin for watching internet content
Available       mythweb-0.24+fixes20110507-0.0.all          An 
integrated web browser plugin for your MythTV system
Available       nitrogen-1.5.1-1.amd64                      wallpaper 
browser and changing utility for X
Available       partlibrary-2.1.2.8-1-1.all                 Electrical 
and processing parts and symbols for QCad 2
Available       password-gorilla-1.5.3.4-1.all              
cross-platform password manager
Available       photon-0.4.6-3.all                          a static 
HTML gallery generator
Available       rhythmbox-plugins-0.12.8-5+b1.amd64         plugins for 
rhythmbox music player
Available       smb4k-0.10.10-1.amd64                       Samba (SMB) 
share advanced browser for KDE
Available       sozi-11.07-1.all                            inkscape 
extension for creating animated presentations
Available       sugar-browse-activity-0.84-108-10.all       web browsing 
activity for the Sugar graphical shell
Available       sugar-browse-activity-0.86-120-1.all        web browsing 
activity for the Sugar graphical shell
Available       telegnome-0.1.1-4.amd64                     A graphical 
teletext viewer
Available       tkdesk-2.0-9.1.amd64                        Tk/tcl based 
X11 Desktop/File manager
Available       ttb-1.0.1-3.all                             Browse 
teletekst (Dutch) on your computer
Available       unixodbc-bin-2.3.0-1.amd64                  Graphical 
tools for ODBC management and browsing
Available       x11-apps-7.6+5.amd64                        X applications
Available       xemacs21-gnome-mule-21.4.22-3.1+b1.amd64    highly 
customizable text editor -- transitional package
Available       xemacs21-gnome-mule-canna-wnn-21.4.22-3.1+b1.amd64    
highly customizable text editor -- transitional package
Available       xemacs21-gnome-nomule-21.4.22-3.1+b1.amd64    highly 
customizable text editor -- transitional package
Available       xmotd-1.17.3b-5.amd64                       a message of 
the day browser for X
Installed       yelp-2.30.1+webkit-1+b1.amd64               Help browser 
for GNOME
Available       yelp-xsl-3.0.2-2.all                        XSL 
stylesheets for the yelp help browser

The result doesn't contain a single relevant package that I was 
searching for -- a web browser or file browser. The graphical package 
filter appears to just modify the output randomly, for e.g. 
libgdl-1-common-2.30.1-1.all and libgdl-3-common-3.0.2-1.all are not 
graphical packages and dont even contain the browser keyword.
epiphany-browser-data, geeqie-common, kdevelop-dev are not graphical 
packages.

pkcon --filter=gui search details winff

Gives no results, whereas there's a graphical package with the exact name.

Query:pkcon --filter=gui search details convert
Result:
Available       abr2gbr-1:1.0.2-2.amd64                     Converts 
PhotoShop brushes to GIMP
Available       apng2gif-1.3-2.amd64                        convert APNG 
animated images to GIF files
Available       autotrace-0.31.1-16.amd64                   bitmap to 
vector graphics converter
Available       comix-4.0.4-1.all                           GTK Comic 
Book Viewer
Available       convertall-0.4.2-1.all                      very 
flexible unit converter
Available       darktable-0.9.2-1.amd64                     virtual 
lighttable and darkroom for photographers
Available       dcraw-8.99-1+b2.amd64                       decode raw 
digital camera images
Available       dime-0.20030921-2.amd64                     DXF Import, 
Manipulation, and Export programs
Available       ditaa-0.9+ds1-3.all                         convert 
ASCII diagrams into proper bitmap graphics
Available       dot2tex-2.8.7+repack-1.all                  Graphviz to 
LaTeX converter
Available       epub-utils-0.2.1-2.amd64                    tools to 
work with the EPub file format
Available       fbi-2.07-7.amd64                            Linux frame 
buffer image viewer
Installed       ffmpeg-5:0.8.4-0.1.amd64                    audio/video 
encoder, streaming server & audio/video file converter.
Available       fig2sxd-0.20-1.amd64                        convert XFig 
files to OpenOffice.org format
Available       figtoipe-20080517-1.amd64                   convert FIG 
files to XML files for ipe
Available       flpsed-0.5.2-1.amd64                        a WYSIWYG 
pseudo PostScript editor
Available       gif2png-2.5.4-2.amd64                       GIF -> PNG 
conversions
Available       giftrans-1.12.2-16.amd64                    Convert any 
GIF file into a GIF89a
Available       gimp-dimage-color-1.1.0-3.amd64             GIMP plugin 
to convert Minolta DiMAGE pictures to sRGB colour space
Available       gimp-gmic-1.5.0.0+dfsg-1+b1.amd64           GIMP plugin 
for GREYC's Magic Image Converter
Available       gimp-plugin-registry-3.5.4-1+b1.amd64       repository 
of optional extensions for GIMP
Available       gimp-ufraw-0.18-1.1.amd64                   gimp 
importer for raw camera images
Available       gip-1.7.0-1-2.amd64                         IP 
calculator for GNOME desktop environment
Available       gmic-1.5.0.0+dfsg-1+b1.amd64                GREYC's 
Magic Image Converter
Available       graphicsmagick-1.3.12-1.1.amd64             collection 
of image processing tools
Available       gregorio-2.0-1.1.amd64                      command-line 
tool to typeset Gregorian chant
Available       gxneur-0.12.0-1.amd64                       GTK+ 
frontend for xneur keyboard layout switcher
Available       handbrake-cli-0.9.5-0.6.amd64               versatile 
DVD ripper and video transcoder (command line)
Available       handbrake-gtk-0.9.5-0.6.amd64               versatile 
DVD ripper and video transcoder (GTK GUI)
Available       hp2xx-3.4.4-8.amd64                         HPGL 
converter into some vector- and raster formats
Installed       imagemagick-8:6.6.9.7-5+b1.amd64            image 
manipulation programs
Available       inventor-clients-2.1.5-10-15.amd64          Open 
Inventor client programs
Available       ipe-7.1.0-1.amd64                           drawing 
editor for creating figures in PDF or PS formats
Available       isight-firmware-tools-1.5.93-1.amd64        tools for 
dealing with Apple iSight firmware
Available       jp2a-1.0.6-3.1.amd64                        converts jpg 
images to ascii
Available       kasumi-2.5-2.amd64                          Simple 
dictionary utility for Anthy
Available       kdemultimedia-kio-plugins-4:4.6.5-3.amd64    transparent 
audio CD access for applications using the KDE Platform
Available       keurocalc-1.1.0-1.amd64                     universal 
currency converter and calculator - binary package
Available       keurocalc-data-1.1.0-1.all                  universal 
currency converter and calculator - data package
Available       kid3-1.6-2.amd64                            KDE MP3 ID3 
tag editor
Available       kid3-qt-1.6-2.amd64                         Audio tag editor
Available       kinput2-canna-3.1-10.2.amd64                An input 
server for X11 applications that want Japanese text input
Available       kinput2-canna-wnn-3.1-10.2.amd64            An input 
server for X11 applications that want Japanese text input
Available       kinput2-wnn-3.1-10.2.amd64                  An input 
server for X11 applications that want Japanese text input
Available       kipi-plugins-1.9.0-2+b1.amd64               image 
manipulation/handling plugins for KIPI aware programs
Available       libjpeg-progs-8c-2.amd64                    Programs for 
manipulating JPEG files
Available       libpano13-bin-2.9.18+dfsg-3.amd64           panorama 
tools utilities
Available       librsvg2-bin-2.34.0-1.amd64                 command-line 
and graphical viewers for SVG files
Available       libtiff-tools-3.9.5-2.amd64                 TIFF 
manipulation and conversion tools
Available       libwmf-bin-0.2.8.4-8.1.amd64                Windows 
metafile conversion tools
Available       meshlab-1.3.0a+dfsg1-2+b1.amd64             System for 
processing and editing triangular meshes
Available       mjpegtools-1:2.0.0-0.3.amd64                MJPEG video 
capture/editting/playback MPEG encoding
Available       mrwtoppm-0.1.1-2.2.amd64                    tool to 
convert Minolta DiMAGE 5/7/7i RAW images to PPM
Available       mrwtoppm-data-0.1.1-2.2.all                 tone curves 
and colormaps for mrwtoppm
Available       nautilus-image-converter-0.3.0-3.1.amd64    nautilus 
extension to mass resize or rotate images
Available       nautilus-image-manipulator-0.3-1.all        Resize and 
send images from Nautilus
Installed       netpbm-2:10.0-15.amd64                      Graphics 
conversion tools between image formats
Available       openclipart-0.18+dfsg-12.all                Open Clip 
Art Library
Available       pcf2bdf-1.04-2.amd64                        convert X11 
font from PCF to BDF format
Available       pdf2svg-0.2.1-2+b2.amd64                    converts PDF 
documents to SVG files (one per page)
Available       pdftoipe-20091014-3+b1.amd64                converts 
arbitrary PDF file to XML file readable by Ipe
Installed       pstoedit-3.60-1.amd64                       PostScript 
and PDF files to editable vector graphics converter
Available       pybliographer-1.2.14-3.all                  tool for 
manipulating bibliographic databases
Available       radiance-4R0+20110410-1.amd64               Lighting 
Simulation and Rendering System
Available       rawstudio-2.0-1.amd64                       RAW image 
converter
Available       rawtherapee-3.0~a2+hg1075.9a478044c65c~dfsg1-1.amd64    
A free RAW converter and digital photo processing software
Available       sam2p-0.47-1-3.amd64                        convert 
raster images to EPS, PDF, and other formats
Available       sfftobmp-3.1.2-5.amd64                      SFF 
(Structed Fax File) Converter
Available       soundconverter-1.4.4-2.all                  GNOME 
application to convert audio files into other formats
Available       soundkonverter-0.9.94-2.amd64               audio 
converter frontend for KDE
Available       subtitleripper-0.3.4-0.7.amd64              DVD Subtitle 
Ripper for Linux
Available       tedia2sql-1.2.12-3.all                      Converts a 
Dia diagram to various SQL dialects
Available       tomboy-latex-0.5-2.all                      LaTeX plugin 
for Tomboy
Installed       transfig-1:3.2.5.d-1.amd64                  Utilities 
for converting XFig figure files
Available       ufraw-0.18-1.1.amd64                        standalone 
importer for raw camera images
Installed       ufraw-batch-0.18-1.1.amd64                  batch 
importer for raw camera images
Available       videotrans-1.6.1-0.0.amd64                  DVD 
authoring utilities
Available       xcftools-1.0.7-2.amd64                      command-line 
tools for extracting data for XCF files
Available       xfig-1:3.2.5.b-1.1.amd64                    Facility for 
Interactive Generation of figures under X11
Available       xfig-libs-1:3.2.5.b-1.1.all                 XFig image 
libraries and examples
Installed       xfonts-utils-1:7.6+1.amd64                  X Window 
System font utility programs
Available       xmorph-1:20090926.amd64                     digital 
image warp and morph (x11)
Available       xneur-0.12.0-1.1.amd64                      in-place 
conversion of text typed in with a wrong keyboard layout

You can see similar results.

I also wonder what do you mean by 'GUI', is it gnome, KDE, x11 etc... 
sections?



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