I think it would be great to have a kind of update repository or a software looking for available updates and applying them since this would help to keep ones software up to date and would make the installation and upgrade of software easier! Preferably the updates should be performed on demand so one can start them when a fast internet connection is available?
And thank you for this great software, it helps a lot! especially openoffice.portable since openoffice is not that widespread on windows-computers yet! But also firefox ...
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Update repository a'la Debian?
October 29, 2007 - 9:03am
#1
Update repository a'la Debian?
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It is a great idea (did you saw my idea?). I am in favor of the repository idea. Also, it seems that it is already in development, but stalled.
Blue is everything.
I don't think that is possible with SourceForge. At any rate, the question arises: where will all of those mirrors come from? Who will arrange for them and/or pay the bills?
Not an impossible task, as it has been done by other open source projects.
Anyway, I could be wrong, but I'm thinking that is what is holding up several update or packaging ideas, not lack of ideas.
MC
You're talking of my original idea, right?
No, it is possible. My idea is to have a web page that links to the direct download at SourceFourge. SourceFourge already has mirrors (there is even an option to choose which mirror to choose at the download page). And for each app updated, some minutes might be spent updating the repositories.
If you're talking of his idea, then... He never talked about mirrors, and for having some, there's only the need to have a ftp server anywhere (normally universities allow some space of their ftp servers, at least here).
Blue is everything.
I've already written a base for code for this kind of idea. Hopefully John will take the idea and run with it.
Also, you can download directly from a SF page with the right parameters.
"If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the precipitate."
1. What will it take to get the repository/autoupdate thing going?
Maybe John is waiting until all the files are signed (that would be a very good idea on an autoupdate process)? Or maybe his plate is too full and he hasn't been able to delegate the auto-update task yet?
2. You mention parameters. Is the download from SF just a matter of following the redirect (Location) or does the URL have to be formed in a specific way? I'm a bit dense today and can't seem to find the HOWTO for that.
MC
AFAIK, there's no documentation on downloading directly from SourceForge, but I believe if you use ?download or something, it should work directly (or maybe, you don't have ?download and it does it. Meh).
"If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the precipitate."
You can download directly from a mirror. The URL gets converted into this format after you pick a mirror or one gets picked for you:
Example:
http://superb-west.dl.sourceforge.net/sourceforge/buddhachu-pa/Wormux_Po...
If you had a way for users to pick the mirror closest to them then you could slide it right into the URL.
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I'm saying that if you use something like cURL to download the actual page you are linked to, on downloads.sf.net, then it downloads the file, not the page. Also works with the InetLoad NSIS extension (I've done experiments).
I'll probably take a look at the last version of SF that was open source to see how it works it out.
Edit: Yep, seems to do it if you have no parameters to the url.
"If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the precipitate."
I'm thinking that SF.net would prefer that the thousands of PA downloads be balanced across their mirrors.
In my experimentation it's not too hard to follow their redirect to one of the mirrors. I'm not impressed with their geolocator; it seems to have me downloading from the US west coast, instead of one of the mirrors closer to home. But at least following the redirect balances things, and would probably keep PA downloads from getting the wrong kind of attention.
On the other hand, they could just do balancing with DNS on downloads.sourceforge.net. At any rate, we should probably do what meets their policies most closely.
MC
I can't recall your idea exactly, but I'd support any mechanism that gets the job done, meaning it makes it as easy as possible for the end user to
find out when an update is available and (b) have the update applied with a minimum of fuss, preferably by clicking a button in the PAM.
MC