Re: installation prefix with pkgsrc including non-BSD: always /usr/pkg?

[Alistair Crooks <agc%pkgsrc.org@localhost>]

On Wed, Feb 09, 2011 at 12:45:18PM +0100, Joerg Sonnenberger wrote:
> On Tue, Feb 08, 2011 at 05:27:30PM +0100, Alistair Crooks wrote:
> > On Tue, Feb 08, 2011 at 02:47:40PM +0100, Joerg Sonnenberger wrote:
> > > On Tue, Feb 08, 2011 at 08:11:19AM +0000, Thomas Mueller wrote:
> > > > Does pkgsrc always install to the same prefix, typically /usr/pkg, even
> > > > for non-BSD packages that are normally installed in /bin, /sbin, /lib
> > > > and /include?
> > > 
> > > Yes. No installation outside $PREFIX (and maybe $VARBASE in some edge
> > > cases).
> > 
> > No.
> 
> Yes.

No.
 
> > 
> > % pkg_info -qL standalone-tcsh
> > /bin/tcsh
> > /usr/share/man/man1/tcsh.1
> > /usr/share/nls/C/tcsh.cat
> > ...
> > 
> > There is no reason to impose arbitrary restrictions on where packages place
> > packages.
> 
> There are good reasons for this "arbitrary" restrictions, but I don't
> care enough to repeat them again. This discussion is too old. Since
> there is only one package violating this, I don't bother.

Let's see - I founded pkgsrc, wrote the guide to it, made it a first
class citizen with its own self-contained mk files.  I ported pkgsrc
to Solaris in 1999, and to Mac OS X in 2001, then created the posix
bootstrap for it.  I presented package views in 2002 at EuroBSDcon in
Amsterdam, and generally looked after it from 1997 until 2005.  I also
co-mentored the partially successful pkg_install rewrite project in
2006.  So I do know all about how things are placed where in pkgsrc,
and what the design decisions are.  This is because I came up with the
design.

There are no restrictions about where things may be put.  The above
package shows that, whilst you may not like it, it is possible to
place files anywhere in the file system. Anything which tries to
restrict where files can go must, therefore, be mere guidelines.

Regards,
Alistair

PS.  Sometimes there are good reasons for putting files into different
places in the hierarchy.  grub and lilo, for instance, on linux. 
Statically-linked shells on any platform where /usr may be on a
different partition to /.  Now I recognise that these should be the
exceptions rather than the rule, and, indeed, that is how they are in
pkgsrc.  But telling me that I can't do that - thanks, but think
again, please.