Re: Debian home page -> Download link broken:
On Sun, Jun 11, 2023 at 09:20:41AM -0400, The Wanderer wrote:
> On 2023-06-11 at 09:02, Greg Wooledge wrote:
>
> > On Sun, Jun 11, 2023 at 08:12:49AM -0400, The Wanderer wrote:
> >
> >> The same thing applies to those who track 'stable' by that name.
> >> Using the symbolic names for the releases, rather than the actual
> >> codenames, *is semantically different* and the tools *should treat
> >> it differently*.
> >
> > Using "stable" in your sources.list is idiotic, and you should not do
> > it. Ever.
> >
> > This is not a "use at your own risk" scenario, like using "testing".
> > That's OK for people who choose to accept the responsibility.
> >
> > Using "stable" is just a mistake.
>
> I do not understand why or how. If you want to transition from one
> stable release to the next when that "next" release is made, I don't see
> any better option for doing so, and I don't see how there's any downside
> to using the symbolic name 'stable' for that purpose.
The issue is that an upgrade to a new stable release CANNOT BE AUTOMATED
by the tools. There are manual steps required, and these are specific
to each release, and to each user's unique system.
One example of this -- among many! -- is the changing of sources.list
line syntax across releases. This time around, we got a new section
("non-free-firmware") that had to be added to each line. Before that,
there was a change to the syntax of the security.debian.org line, from
"buster/updates" to "bullseye-security".
And that's just an obvious and superficial change. There are deeper,
more subtle changes as well. None of this is automatic, and a user
who is expecting that "hey, I can just use stable and it'll upgrade
for me every time it needs to!!!" needs to be educated.
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