rpm experiences [was: Backing up whole system]

[Tom Horsley]

On Sun, 10 May 2009 00:53:52 -0400
Gene Heskett wrote:

> That leaves both of us in the dark calling each other less than 
> experts.  And that isn't pretty to the bystanders.

All I know about making rpms is that I searched the web for
simple instructions and found a link to a guide all kinds of
different pages pointed at as the simplest possible intro
document for building an rpm: It was a 97 page long pdf file.
I ran screaming into the night :-).

There was also my 2nd hand experience at work. The guys who
do the packaging of our software were filled with dread at
the prospect of making .deb packages, because they knew how
long they fought with rpm to get all the fiddling details
right.

With grim determination in their eyes they marched off to do
battle with the .deb packaging tools, then with amazement,
they emerged from their cubicles, having gotten the .deb
building down pat in a couple of hours.

I can only conclude there is something fundamentally wrong
with the simplicity factor in rpms :-).