Let's talk about subversion/svn

[Paul Schmehl]

--On November 18, 2012 11:16:07 PM -0800 Jeremy Chadwick <jdc at koitsu.org> 
wrote:

>
> And this is partially what it pulls down dependency-wise:
>
> root at icarus:~ # pkg_add -r -n subversion
> Fetching
> ftp://ftp.freebsd.org/pub/FreeBSD/ports/amd64/packages-9-stable/Latest/su
> bversion.tbz...  Done. Package dependency sqlite3-3.7.14.1 for
> ftp://ftp.freebsd.org/pub/FreeBSD/ports/amd64/packages-9-stable/Latest/su
> bversion.tbz not found! Package dependency gdbm-1.9.1 for
> ftp://ftp.freebsd.org/pub/FreeBSD/ports/amd64/packages-9-stable/Latest/su
> bversion.tbz not found! Package dependency db42-4.2.52_5 for
> ftp://ftp.freebsd.org/pub/FreeBSD/ports/amd64/packages-9-stable/Latest/su
> bversion.tbz not found! Package dependency neon29-0.29.6_4 for
> ftp://ftp.freebsd.org/pub/FreeBSD/ports/amd64/packages-9-stable/Latest/su
> bversion.tbz not found!
>
> I say partially because due to use of -n, some of those packages weren't
> downloaded, thus the recursive dependency nature is lost (I consider
> this mostly a bug with -n when used with a remote package, but it could
> also be deemed a feature).
>

It's not just subversion.  I was working on a new port the other day, and 
one of it's dependencies triggered a lengthy traverse of numerous x11, 
x11-tookits, x11-fonts, etc., etc.  Rather mind-boggling when you realize 
this is a program that generates graphs rather than a GUI-based program.

When you're working on a headless server, it's rather irritating to see 
half or more of x11 installed just so a program can generate graphs.

Frankly I think some of those dependencies wouldn't be necessary if someone 
took the time to figure out what library an app needs and simply built the 
library instead of the whole dern app.

Maybe that's what we need - a library-only version of some of these ports 
that get reused over and over again.

What I do is do a pkg_deinstall -iRP to preserve the libs and dump the 
rest.  That's an interesting exercise as well.  Uninstalling a number of 
ports recursively ends up uninstalling apache, perl, php, ruby and python. 
Not exactly what one has in mind.

Bottom line?  There has to be a better way.

-- 
Paul Schmehl, Senior Infosec Analyst
As if it wasn't already obvious, my opinions
are my own and not those of my employer.
*******************************************
"It is as useless to argue with those who have
renounced the use of reason as to administer
medication to the dead." Thomas Jefferson
"There are some ideas so wrong that only a very
intelligent person could believe in them." George Orwell