Patrick Shanahan wrote:
* Billie Erin Walsh
[01-14-07 23:47]: [...] The major differences I see are the file structure and how you install something. I have no clue where stuff is on the hard drives, [ there's bits, pieces, and copies of stuff all over the place ] but then I don't have to. The computer keeps track of all that stuff. Software installation is a whole other can of worms. There ain't a whole lot of standardization sometimes. RPM's are pretty much a no brainer, most of the time. Tar balls on the other hand. Well, lets just say ya better find that "readme" in there somewhere.
If using an rpm-based distro, searching for and reading the 'README' in a tar ball is definitely not enough. A tar ball install procedure knows nothing of the rpm structure and database and vice versa. Installing from tar ball will corrupt your rpm-based system, altering file structure and replacing/removing files necessary to other applications, perhaps to the point of a failed system.
At the very least, when installing a tar ball, checkinstall should be employed, UNLESS YOU ARE VERY KNOWLEDGABLE ABOUT LINUX STRUCTURE.
While this is technically true, the fact is that any official suse rpm packages install binaries in /usr/bin, /usr/sbin, etc. OTOH, tarball builds inevitably default to installing binaries in /usr/local/bin, /usr/local/sbin, etc, so there is no collision. According to old unix traditions, /usr/local is where non-vendor stuff is installed. Joe -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse+help@opensuse.org