Why Are You NOT Using FreeBSD ?

[Dave Hayes]

Chris Nehren <apeiron+freebsd-stable at isuckatdomains.net> writes:
> The descriptions of the options assume the admin is familiar with the
> software they're installing. I do not think it is the FreeBSD Project's
> purview to document every option for every port. At the very least it'd
> take quite a lot of time and effort to document all of that. 

That's a fair position. Perhaps it would not be too much trouble to add
this one idea to optionsng: a "more info" field on each option knob
which may be filled in by a port maintainer.

> Beyond this, such explanations would duplicate each port's own
> documentation.  

Not necessarily. I don't have an example offhand, but I suspect there
are a number of FreeBSD specific option knobs applied to ports. 

> If you're not familiar with something, you very probably shouldn't be
> installing it.

Basing my argument here on assumptions that FreeBSD wants more users, I
would argue that the better policy is to be liberal in who you help and
conservative in who you call unfamiliar.

In this spirit, I can guarantee you that there are plenty of people who
will install despite your requirement above, set some option that they
shouldn't (or fail to set one that they should), and then come away with
a bad experience.

Instead, if the person familiar with the software (who is ostensibly
writing the port) could spend just 5 more minutes writing a simple "this
option is documented at url://..." or "dont set this if you have port
foo installed" that would help a lot of people.

> Show me one other similar packaging system that does this level of
> handholding. The only comparable ones I can think of are portage and
> macports, and they certainly don't, either.

The absence of such a system isn't really relevant to the idea of
improving the current one is it? :)
-- 
Dave Hayes - Consultant - Altadena CA, USA - dave at jetcafe.org 
>>> The opinions expressed above are entirely my own <<<

"Computer games don't affect kids; I mean if Pac-Man
affected us as kids, we'd all be running around in darkened
rooms, munching magic pills and listening to repetitive
electronic music." -- Kristian Wilson, Nintendo, Inc, 1989