RE: CF: Crossfire Installation

[dragonm <>]

-----Original Message-----
From: Mark Wedel
To: ''
Sent: 9/7/99 10:57 PM
Subject: Re: CF: Crossfire Installation


 Best as I know, the installation location of all the crossfire files
can be set by giving the appropriate options when you run configure.

 I don't know what the FHS might be, but I have a feeling that with proper
configuration options, crossfire could probably follow it.
----------------
Yes, I'm sure it can.  My point is, conforming to the FHS destinations for
all the pieces of Crossfire should be the default behavior of the install
target in the Makefile, not an option you have to accomplish by extensive
overriding of the defaults.

<hauls out the soap box>
The *nix Filesystem Hierarchy as it has developed over the last two decades
is a god-aweful mess, and the difficulty of *nix software installation is a
joke of cosmic proportions.  *nix has existed in something like its current
form for 20 years or so, and installation of software under it has barely
changed since the first day.  That's ridiculous.  (Praise be unto GNU
autoconf, however.)  The FHS is an attempt to bring a little sanity into an
insane OS, and as developers, I think it's encumbent upon us to do our part,
however small.
<kicks soap box back under desk>
----------------
 But I think more importantly, it is going to be prepackaged binaries
(rpm or whatever else) that is going to be the more important issue.
----------------
Packages are also an issue, but I contest whether they're more important or
not.  Certainly in this day and age, a RedHat RPM, a Debian DEB, and a Sun
PKG distribution would be appropriate.  But again, those packages should
install in a manner conforming to the FHS for the various platforms.  Sun's
/opt for the PKG format, /usr/bin for the RedHat RPM binaries, etc.  By all
means, let us have packages.  But don't neglect the FHS for them, either.

DM
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