Allowing apps to install packages

[Karol Pietrzak]

On Tuesday 28 February 2006 12:06, John Tapsell wrote:
> Hi,
>   If an app wants to install some files from the distro's repository,
> is there currently any projects to try to allow that?
>
>   For example, in a KDE app we may want to install a certain set of
> files.  What would be useful would be in a distro-independent way to
> say "install japanese_language_pack"   for example.  Then it would be
> up to the distro's to provide some mapping from "install
> japanese_language_pack"  to running their gui package manager, asking
> for root password, and installing it.
>
> Is there such a project already underway, or should I start one?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but you're thinking of a "generic" package manager 
that translates a set of instructions into the distributions native package 
manager (e.g., RPM, DEB, etc.)?   Could you give a real-world specific 
example of what this would do?

What you specify, however, would VERY much be useful in the real world.  I 
think the best solution is to add the kind of functionality you specify to a 
pre-existing package manager.

The Autopackage folks [1] already have working, multi-distribution 
functionality for things like "install this .desktop file" and "install this 
man page".  I believe they would welcome your help / patches with open arms.

In addition, I myself am I working on a cross-distribution library [2] which 
would enable developers to do seemingly simple things like "get the KDE 
prefix" with relative ease (Right now even that simple example is implemented 
in like 500 different ways in 500 distributions).

Needless to say, I would welcome your help / patches as well. :)

[1] http://autopackage.org
[2] http://sourceforge.net/projects/ldw
-- 
Karl Pietrzak
kap4020 at rit.edu
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