Joerg Sonnenberger wrote:

> To make it plain, a package should modify files in ${PREFIX},
> ${WRKOBJDIR} and ${VARBASE} only.

I have to disagree. Given that we allow the user to set PKG_SYSCONFBASE, 
and have good reasons for it (for a good time, see the surrounding 
discussion in the list archives), we're obligated to make sure packages 
continue to respect that setting.

Factual comments: One good way be sure of that is to have a regular bulk 
build that sets some outlandish PKG_SYSCONFBASE. Of course, for most 
values of "outlandish PKG_SYSCONFBASE", we wouldn't want to publish the 
results of such a build as our official binary packages. (Likewise for 
LOCALBASE != "/usr/pkg", VARBASE != "/var", and so on; ISTR you've done 
such builds, so apologies if I'm preaching to the choir.)

Opinionated comments: I've used PKG_SYSCONFBASE=/etc for as long as it's 
been around, have full confidence in it, and don't think it's a terribly 
outlandish setting. In fact, I wouldn't mind seeing it become the 
default. My rationale is partly aesthetics, and partly that I expect 
backing up /etc means backing up ~all my systemwide config files. On the 
basis of the latter point, if our official binary packages used 
/etc/pkg, that'd be good enough for me to start using them.

- Amitai