Multilib Middle-Ground

[Les Mikesell]

Nicolas Mailhot wrote:
> 
>> Basically, Fedora is a lot more interested in improving our free
>> stack.  It's been well known for years how to install the proprietary
>> JDK; yes, jpackage makes it a lot nicer for those people aware of the
>> system, but I think we should leave it up to jpackage rather than
>> putting it into Fedora.
> 
> I don't think the jpackage developers are very interested in proprietary
> stuff either.

If by proprietary stuff you mean the standard-compliant version from 
Sun, anyone can grab their own copy of the binary.  The problem is 
adapting it to fedora's weirdness regarding other package dependencies 
and multi-symlinked paths.

> JPackage is mostly about packaging the FLOSS Java
> universe, the proprietary bits are only there as requires,

The proprietary bits aren't there, just a sane way to fix up the fedora 
specific package/layout requirements.  Some other distributions have 
included the Sun binary now that it is possible.  There are reasons not 
to do that. I just can't think of any reasons not to supply a sane means 
to fix fedora when you get your own binary, though.

  and get
> dropped when they  have a working FLOSS replacement 

Let's put off the discussion of replacements until there is one that 
meets the compliance tests.

>(and are generally
> speaking a PITA to manage in the meanwhile)

The point is that for years fedora has had a scheme of package 
requirements and no standard-compliant JVM that provided them.  And it 
has a strange symlinked path scheme that needs to be fixed when 
installing a standard JVM.

-- 
   Les Mikesell
    lesmikesell at gmail.com