On Fri, 30 Aug 2002 17:34:48 -0500 (CDT) Adam Heath <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> On Sat, 31 Aug 2002, it was written: > > > Hello world, > > > > In a couple of days uncompressed Packages files for unstable will > > cease to be generated, and bzip2'ed Packages files will be generated > > in their place (actually, if you look carefully, they're already being > > generated). Sources.bz2 files are being added too. If you have any > > scripts looking at the uncompressed Packages files, you should change > > them to look at either the gzip or bzip2 versions now. > > > > Presuming things continue to work in unstable, the same change will be > > made to testing in a few weeks. Similarly, the Contents-*.gz files for > > unstable will probably be switching to .bz2 in the not too distant > > future. > > > > (Yes, this is as previously discussed in March 2001...) > Using http range transfers its possible to only download a portion of the packages file if its uncompressed, this method could have been used along with a package "index" file to vastly reduce the bandwidth used to update the Packages file. If its compressed its all or nothing. I did generate code to create the "index" file, however to would have needed to be integrated into katie (or whatever the program is that generates Packages file) to keep in sync with the Packages file, i never got around to finishing it from there. Whilst that method would have bene better than the status quo gzip or bzip), it would be better if metadata were by design retrievable individually, thats more radical proposition. (sorry going away for 2 weeks, aj's witty yet insulting reply will have to wait, cc'ing just to provoke him :-P ) Glenn
