>        Since we are liable to have meta pkgs for various other reasons,
>        how about a variation whereby a package-set is a meta-pkg, plus
>        all its required packages in one tarfile.
>
>        This would work for the install issue, plus might prove handy for
>        normal packages as well - I'd quite like to be able to copy
>        the kde package as one block from machine to machine...


I think the key difference is that (AFAICT) meta-pkgs just include
dependency "pointers" to other pkgs. 

Pkgsets, OTOH, are just "containers" (like shipping containers) that
hold a collection of pkgs inside them for easy handling. they dont
need to be pkg-like, but we could easily make them so.

There's nothing in the pkg format that provides for a recusrive
un-packaging (sorta like unpacking a tarfile from within another
tarfile, rathe than just copying the inner tarfile.)  That's the
mechanism we need for "container" pkgsets: without it, they dont work
as "containers".

If the pkg_* tools were extended with a recursion mechanism, then I
think Hubert's goals would be met, too. That's the option I prefer.
I dont know if the  pkg people concur or not.