tluxt <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
The subject of "pinning" has been discussed several times late last year on this list and on the Debian-Users list. There were several different alternatives offered, and I don't have any idea if one is better than the other. I chose one and implemented it here, and it has worked ok for me. Here is what I did:
1. Add the "unstable" lines to your /etc/apt/sources.list file. An easy way mfor me to do this is to duplicate your existing "testing" lines via a "copy & paste" and then edit the new lines by changing all instances of "testing" to "unstable". I find this minimized my typos.
2. Create an empty /etc/apt/preferences file if it isn't already there (touch /etc/apt/preferences), and populate it with the lines below. Or you can paste in an already pre-made file you got from somewhere via E-Mail or FTP. The bottom line is you want to have a /etc/apt/preferences file that look something like this:
Package: * Pin: release a=testing Pin-Priority: 777
Package: * Pin: release a=unstable Pin-Priority: 333
3. I suggest you read the docs to get a feel for what all this means and the other commands available. (man apt_preferences) This is a bit of a heavy read, but it is worth it.
4. Run "apt-get update". This will now get the lists from BOTH "testing' and "unstable" on your machine.
5. If you run a "apt-get upgrade" it will just upgrade all packages from "testing" and whatever packages from "unstable" you have already installed.
6. If you install a new package with "apt-get install <package name>, it will ALWAY install the "testing" version.
6. If you want to install a SPECIFIC package from "unstable" just run
"apt-get -t unstable install <package name>". In the case of installing kghostview from unstable the command would be "apt-get -t unstable install kghostview".
There are other methods and other recommended "Pin-Priority" numbers discussed in the previously mentioned messages. You might want to review them to see all your options. All I can say is this particular method has worked quite well for me during the last 2-3 months.
Cheers, -Don Spoon-
