Re: Making Packages

[Sheldon Gill]

Stefan Bidigaray wrote:
> Just wondering if there is an easy way to install GNUstep to a different 
> directory in order to make packages?  If I remember correctly, last time 
> I tried "make DESTDIR=/whatever install" it just installed the packages 
> to $GNUSTEP_SYSTEM_ROOT instead of /whatever/$GNUSTEP_SYSTEM_ROOT.  The 
> reason why I want to do this is because since I test GNUstep on my 
> Slackware computer I thought I might as well create a package and put it 
> up on linuxpackages.net <http://linuxpackages.net> for others.  I'll 
> probably be building Startup 0.16 instead of all the different packages 
> just for simplicity.

Startup builds "gnustep-core". Core being -make, -base, -gui and -back. So 
perhaps your package should be referred to as such?

Anyway, you want to set GNUSTEP_INSTALLATION_DIR to the path for your staging 
area. So you'd do something like this:

export GNUSTEP_INSTALLATION=/usr/src/packaging
make
make install
cd /usr/src/packaging

and then do whatever your packaging system dictates.

> On that note, what's the correct place to install GNUstep?  Is it /usr 
> or /usr/lib?  Debian seems to put it on /usr/lib but GNUstep's default 
> is /usr... so which one is it?

Both and neither. It depends on which operating system and what standards you 
are adhering to.

Those wanting a truly OpenStep/NeXtStep/MacOS style will say:

/Local
/System

Those of *nix vintage along X11 lines will say

/usr/GNUstep/

Debian says, basically: GNUstep is a library and libraries go into /usr/lib/
If it needs additional resources they can go into /usr/lib/GNUstep.
Although, if they are non-binary (ie shared) resources they should go into 
/usr/share/gnustep because CapitalisingDirectories is against their standard. 
Then again, so are "Space Containing Directories".

Perhaps the better answer is that the layout was designed to improve things and 
make life easier and better. Some go with that. Others want to make it conform 
to the existing scheme.

A better question would be what are the Slackware rules for packages?


Regards,
Sheldon