Re: laptop "metapackage"
> This is certainly wrong. My UUCP configuration files, all together, make
> less lines than my sendmail or PPP configuration.
i have watched many new comers to the net struggle with uucp, both first
hand and being on the other end of a phone as tech support for them. it
hasn't been easy for any of them. under unix/dos/windows/mac uucp is
complicated because it's designed to be so much more then just an offline
mail protocol.
it is true that you could have a default configuration that was quite simple
but i still maintain that:
* it is difficult for a new comer to understand how it works
* it is difficult for a new comer to debug
* it is difficult for a new comer to find a uucp provider
* methods for retrieving mail are not laptop specific and should not be
included in the meta package.
> If you have several users on your laptop (and we are talking about Unix
> here), fetchmail is not really convenient: you'll need several accounts
> on the ISP and you'll need to put the passwords for all of them in
> fetchmail's configuration.
or to have all domain mail routed to one pop account at your isp (most isps
support this) and have fetchmail pick up all the mail and redistribute it
locally. regardless though this is an unusual configuration for a laptop.
> We should use only free packages in task-laptop, which eliminates
> netscape.
you miss the point, lets say pine or mutt then. both support the pop3
protocol but are not laptop specific.
my vote is that the laptop meta package have the bare minimum needed to help
a user get laptop hardware to work, and to help them get tasks that are
much more likely to be needed on a laptop (roaming, vpn, disconnected file
systems) etc etc.
the packages which are required should be the bare minimum, the most
important thing is good documentation and sample configs (or better default
configurations) which set the user up for laptop style usage. so that users
are aware of all the options, what are generally considered the best options
and can easily setup their software/hardware for the desired configuration.
adam.
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