Subject: Re: When DEPENDS can be upgraded in place
To: David Brownlee <abs@netbsd.org>
From: Frederick Bruckman <fb@enteract.com>
List: tech-pkg
Date: 09/08/2000 09:51:43
On Fri, 8 Sep 2000, David Brownlee wrote:

> On Fri, 8 Sep 2000, Frederick Bruckman wrote:
> > I'm also concerned about what happens when the library evolves to the
> > point where it finally breaks backwards compatability. The only thing
> > we can do for that, I think, is to compile a database of binary
> > packages which are affected. It's not enough to just remove them from
> > the server, because users could have them already on their hard
> > drives, or pressed onto a CD.
> 
> 	Hmm - we _could_ create a new package
> 	lib 1.2 -(upgrades_to)-> lib2 2.0, which would allow both old and
> 	new libraries to be installed.

I'm not following you. The user can always update the "app" package
when he updates the library, as long as he knows that he has to. You
would normally expect him to do that, but he may not, and there's
presently no way for the package tools to "catch" him if he doesn't.