commit: 3f0133a1c35420f3b67284e672538699a35c59fd Author: Sam James <sam <AT> gentoo <DOT> org> AuthorDate: Fri Jan 21 19:01:07 2022 +0000 Commit: Sam James <sam <AT> gentoo <DOT> org> CommitDate: Mon Feb 21 21:39:53 2022 +0000 URL: https://gitweb.gentoo.org/proj/devmanual.git/commit/?id=3f0133a1
general-concepts/use-flags: give guidance on IUSE defaults Avoid e.g. missing common functionality which upstream documentation may refer to/assume. Signed-off-by: Sam James <sam <AT> gentoo.org> Closes: https://github.com/gentoo/devmanual/pull/265 Signed-off-by: Sam James <sam <AT> gentoo.org> general-concepts/use-flags/text.xml | 12 ++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 12 insertions(+) diff --git a/general-concepts/use-flags/text.xml b/general-concepts/use-flags/text.xml index 02f1788..0605e91 100644 --- a/general-concepts/use-flags/text.xml +++ b/general-concepts/use-flags/text.xml @@ -203,6 +203,18 @@ Add <c>+</c> or <c>-</c> before the name of the use flag in <c>IUSE</c> to turn it on or off by default. </p> +<p> +IUSE defaults should be used sparingly. Reasons to exclude/default-disable a +feature may include e.g. large build time for a dependency, or a +configuration that the Gentoo maintainer is unable to test at runtime. +</p> + +<p> +The IUSE defaults for a package should not leave a package in a non-functional +state or lacking important, common functionality. Consulting upstream +documentation may be useful for assessing this. +</p> + <important> Adding <c>-</c> before a flag in <c>IUSE</c> is pretty much useless, as it will neither override the user configuration (<c>make.conf</c>) nor the profile
