> > If you disagree with this, as many seem to, please propose a solution > > whereby package maintainers can easily make sure that app-defaults > > files are updated to reflect any changes introduced in the upstream > > app-defaults file. > > Well, couldn't the files in app-defaults be marked as config files > ("DEBIAN/conffiles") in the packages? Then dpkg creates checksums of these > files and when a package is updated, it can be replaced (if there were no > changes) or it can ask the user what he wants to do with it (replace, > leave under different name, i.e. add .dpkg-dist extension).
The original point was that if these are editable at all, they shouldn't be on a read-only filesystem (as /usr is allowed to be). Personally, since these are _defaults_ that are intended to be overridden by user configuration, I think they are fine where they are. These programs are not system utilities that need to be configured. These are just defaults and there are documented ways for a user to change them as to their individual preferences. Brian ( [EMAIL PROTECTED] ) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- measure with micrometer, mark with chalk, cut with axe, hope like hell