> One thing I can't quite work out though is how Debian handles updated > packages. For example XFree86 3.3.3 is out now, will this eventually be > integrated into the 2.0 release or are the packages in this release frozen > except for bug fixes?
Hamm (Debian 2.0) is presently "stable" it will not change unless critical bugs or security problems are discovered. Check the proposed-updates subdirectory to find out what new changes to hamm are suggested. What basically happens is that after a release, Debian marches forward to the next version. The next version after a release is called unstable. Not unstable because it's filled with bugs (that could possibly be true though!) it's called unstable because it's changing frequently. Shortly before a release the unstable version is "frozen" and that is the current state of the "slink" version of Debian. (FWIW, XFree 3.3.3 is in slink.) There's nothing stopping you from going into an unstable or frozen version and manually downloading a series of *.deb packages and installing them into your hamm version with dpkg. The problem is that you can't/shouldn't do that with dselect or you'd upgrade the entire system to unstable/frozen (or would have to put a *lot* of packages on "hold" status). You, of course, have to be a bit cautious doing this to a production system and ask/do a bit of research before doing so (ask about stability and potential conficts/gotchas) but you can always back out and reinstall the older versions if things go awry. -- Regards, | Windows98 (noun): 32 bit extensions and a . | graphical shell for a 16 bit patch to an 8 Randy | bit operating system originally coded for ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) | a 4 bit microprocessor written by a 2 bit http://www.golgotha.net | company that can't stand 1 bit of competition.
