some packages that can be removed from Core

[Mike A. Harris]

Bill Nottingham wrote:
> These are libraries not required by anything. Note that I'm treating
> perl modules as libraries in this case.
> 
> liboldX

In all honesty, I don't think anything out there uses this library
in Linux, and probably nothing ever has.  I've never seen or heard
of anything using it anyway.  Ancient legacy, and can probably just
be dropped entirely from the OS.

> libxkbui
> libXvMC
> libXxf86dga
[SNIP]
> libxkbui is required only by fontforge, in Extras. libXxf86dga
> is required by various things in Extras.

These are core X Window System libraries, and are expected to be
there.  Various 3rd party software uses and relies upon these
libraries.  They can't IMHO be removed from Core.

Also, the maintenance of the X Window System as a whole, while
modularized, is not done one package as a time.  There is a fair
bit of automation being done to update libraries, drivers, and
keep everything in synchronization, and rolling with upstream
changes.  Splitting things into 2 different piles, which are
maintained separately, with 2 different build systems, etc. would
be a major maintenance nightmare.

Nothing is really to be gained by pushing these small libraries into
Fedora Extras IMHO, except complicating maintenance of X.

Having said that, there are a number of packages that are part of
the full X Window System release which are not currently part of
Fedora Core, and unlike the libraries, are prime candidates for
possible inclusion in Fedora Extras.  A number of the old legacy
X applications, some of which we haven't shipped for many releases
now, can potentially be maintained in Extras if there are volunteers
who are interested in maintaining them.  There are a few other things
which are lesser used software previously part of X11R6-contrib a
number of years back, which interested volunteers may want to
maintain in extras.  I'll post a list of them all sometime after
Christmas, and see if anyone is interested in any of the bits
and pieces.  I believe many users will be happy to see some of
these lesser used tools made available via Extras now, which is
made easily possible thanks to modularization of X.

HTH

-- 
Mike A. Harris, Open Source Advocate  *  http://mharris.ca
Proud to be Canadian.