file dependencies and packages and [blocker] bugs

[Hans de Goede]

Andrew Farris wrote:
> Hans de Goede wrote:
>> seth vidal wrote:
>>> Don't you think we should be able to do something to make this situation
>>> better or even rarer?
>>>
>>
>> Erm, no not really, these apps need a certain file to be in a certain 
>> place, isn't that what filedeps are for?
> 
> Don't you think instead the application should be fixed to stop doing 
> something so archaic as directly accessing font filenames where they are 
> expected to be?
>

No its archaic to think that only gui apps using gtk / qt need fonts, 
what about image libraries like for example php which can be used to 
dynamically generate buttons for websites and in order todo this need 
access to fonts to generate the labels on the buttons? This is just one 
example there are many uses of fonts for which fontconfig is not the answer.

>> I really believe all these packages should be fixed to stop shipping a 
>> private copy of these fonts. The way todo this is to symlink to the 
>> installed official versions, as the packages will actually look for 
>> for example
>> /usr/share/blobAndConquer/data/fonts/vera.ttf and then do their own 
>> rendering (as overlay to a rendered game scene).
> 
> I just don't see why you would 'fix' the problem of shipping extra fonts 
> by rigging them up with fake font files and filedeps (isn't this exactly 
> what symlinking effectively is?).  As long as the apps are really 
> requiring the fonts by a specific filename they should ship the file, or 
> stop loading them that way.
> 

This is just like shipping duplicate system libraries which we aren't 
doing for good reasons.

> There certainly must be a better approach.  Even if the packages that 
> need extra fonts go ahead and ship them... then the majority of users 
> who aren't installing or updating these games do not have to deal with 
> this.  The bandwidth usage caused by downloading large filelists 
> certainly must be higher than just shipping some extra fonts in those 
> game packages.
> 

For a better and real solution to this, see me previous mail. filedeps 
are a part of rpm, this use is a valid use of them, live with it.

Regards,

Hans