> > Actually, bsdinst is just a wrapper which removes '-c' from the command
> > line, and deletes the destination file...  But I apologize for the tone
> > of my earlier post...
> > 
> > However, I think this debate is steering us away from the fact that we
> > need a coherent set of packaging tools, and Irix's are a good place to
> > start...
> 
> I would say that if you're are going to go with some "unusual" or non-
> standard system, (pkg_* being somewhat standard) you should just look
> at RedHat's RPM and get it over with.  If someone is zealous enough to
> write a IRIX compatible install (which I have no first hand knowledge,
> just a description of a convoluted system), why not re-write the RPM
> stuff from scratch?   

I think (or I'd like to think) that the original point was that the various
Irix tools have some cool features and do fit together with themselves, if
not the rest of the world, not that we should admire every vendor with
a gratuitously different way of doing things.

A few nice features:
 - The tools support subsystems, so the use rcan pick and choose from optional
   or alternate parts of a particular package.  For example, the software might
   be available in alternate exacutable formats, and there might be optional
   online help, manuals, or source code that not every user really wants.
 - There are both command line and GUI tools.
 - The system supports patches (although I understand they could be better).
 - They know all about multiple architectures, and will handle such matters
   automatically.
 - Since Navigator comes with Irix, the browser comes configured to deal
   with packages on web pages.  Click on a link and your browser will grab
   the image and feed it to swmgr (the GUI installer tool) and the user can
   point and click their way through the whole process.
 - The user can install an OS without going to single user, miniroot, etc.
   The system does something it calls a "shadow" install where parts of the
   OS that can't be replaced immediately (the kernel comes to mind) are kept
   somewhere and shoved into place early in the boot process (yes this is
   a disk intensive way of upgrading an OS but it is really nice to have
   the installer and the online manuals/release notes up at the same time
   during an install).

I realize that many of these are not mind-bogglingly original, but they are
the kind of features that should be considered if we really want to develop
new tools rather than using what's already out there.