Subject: Re: Documenting user-variables
To: Julio M. Merino Vidal <jmmv84@gmail.com>
From: Hubert Feyrer <hubert@feyrer.de>
List: tech-pkg
Date: 06/04/2005 02:11:04
On Fri, 3 Jun 2005, Julio M. Merino Vidal wrote:
> [first of all... is this the right list for questions about the pkgsrc
> guide or should I be posting to netbsd-docs@?]

This list is fine - someone wanted to have pkgsrc documentation near 
pkgsrc anyways, so let's keep this for now (at least until someone decides 
to move the pkgsrc guide into the NetBSD guide :).


> How does this look?  Any better approach?

Well, long time ago we used to have a list of variables used/setable in 
bsd.pkg.mk, and for some reason it was found to be a good idea to move 
that into src/.../packages.7, where it's rotting away now, while other 
variables get happily documented in the various files in pkgsrc/mk/* where 
they are used/defined, which IMHO is fine. So:

1) as a complete list for pkgsrc variable documentation, I recommend
    moving packages.7 back at the top of bsd.pkg.mk. Yes, that's not
    readable for users, but it will get maintained. We can think about
    transforming it into readability at a later point, if need arises.

2) for some items that users may want to so, the pkgsrc guide is the right
    place. I'd not aim at duplicating the list of konfiguration knobs
    from 1) here, but keep things easy. Putting things into a section
    "4.3 Configuring pkgsrc builds" seems ok for that. I guess several of
    the items from "6. Frequently Asked Questions" could be moved here.

    As for organisationof the section you propose, I think taking the
    various steps of the pkg build/install process should be followed:
    configuring distfile fetching, extracting, patching, configuring, etc
    etc.

Maybe people from the pkgsrc PMC have an opinion too, no idea if they read 
this list. >:)


  - Hubert

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