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Date: Sat, 16 Aug 2014 04:05:03 +0400
From: Andrey Repin <anrdaemon AT yandex DOT ru>
Reply-To: cygwin AT cygwin DOT com
Message-ID: <496613926.20140816040503@yandex.ru>
To: Michael DePaulo <mikedep333 AT gmail DOT com>, cygwin AT cygwin DOT com
Subject: Re: [ANNOUNCEMENT] Updated: man-db-2.6.7-2
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Greetings, Michael DePaulo!

>>>>
>>>> This release removes the cache database generation from the postinstall
>>>> step
>>>> due to its often excessive length.  Users will need to manage the
>>>> database
>>>> themselves with mandb(1) in order to use whatis/apropos(1).
>>>
>>>
>>> IMHO, this sounds like a serious decrease in Cygwin's usability.
>>>
>>> How do Linux distributions handle this? Linux distros install many
>>> more packages by default, so doesn't their cache database generation
>>> typically take much longer?
>>
>>
>> Exactly why they don't seem to do it during postinstall either.  For
>> example, in Fedora this is handled by a cron job.  A future release may add
>> that functionality, but it is clear that postinstall is the wrong place for
>> it.

> I disagree, but I need to read more about the subject in order to have
> a well-informed opinion.

The TL;DR version of the issue is that compilation of database is slow and
prone to fail, plus the database should be re-indexed each time a page is
added, removed or changed.
If Cygwin do this only at man-db postinstall, the database WILL go out of
reality pretty soon.

>>> Also, should documentation (or perhaps the info a user sees when they
>>> start Cygwin for the 1st time) be updated?
>>
>>
>> How so?
>>
>> Yaakov

> Consider the example of where I work. After I install the corporate IT
> department's SCCM "package"/"script" for Cygwin (1.7.16, last updated
> August 2012), I am greeted by this message every time I start the
> Cygwin Terminal:
> ----
> Your group is currently "mkpasswd".  This indicates that your
> gid is not in /etc/group and your uid is not in /etc/passwd.

This is about to change in a short while.

> I am not suggesting that users see a mandb message every time they
> launch cygwin.

This could be resolved in a more graceful way. I.e. motd/fortune/etc.

> But I am suggesting that that users see it when they
> 1st launch cygwin. They already see this message:
> ----
> Copying skeleton files.
> These files are for the users to personalise their cygwin experience.

> They will never be overwritten nor automatically updated.

Users will only see this message, if the $HOME directory is created anew.
I, for one, do not see a reason to keep Cygwin users' $HOMEs separate from a
system %USERPROFILE%.

> Also, users who are particularly reliant on the apropos command
> probably don't know about running the mandb command. It's analogous to
> users launching the Windows "Help and Support" Center, but its search
> bar returning 0 results they haven't run another utility 1st.

That's an issue worth resolving. We just need to find a way to do it in a
non-abusive fashion.


--
WBR,
Andrey Repin (anrdaemon AT yandex DOT ru) 16.08.2014, <03:57>

Sorry for my terrible english...


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