Fcron Dependencies

[Randy McMurchy]

Listed in the dependencies for Fcron is "a text editor (default is vim).

Vim is installed in LFS, so shouldn't this be enough in itself to remove this dependency. The way it is now, it seems that one has to install Vim using the BLFS instructions (linking to X) in order to work with Fcron.

[Richard A Downing]

The point is that you can use any (reasonable) editor but you must have one

• I use Bluefish (which I know is weird). So the book is wrong to say that a

text editor is optional.

fcron uses whatever editor is in the editor=??? in /etc/fcron.conf, and the default is /usr/bin/vi.

[LFS-User@…]

Reopening this bug as there is precendent and policy to not list LFS installed packages as dependencies. The "Required Dependency" of a text editor is bogus and should be removed. There is already a text editor (the default of Fcron, no less) installed.

If anything a note should be added somewhere, but not in the dependencies as it is definately not a compile-time dependency.

[Richard A Downing]

I don't understand this policy. The author of the package states that there must be a text editor. The LFS book states that alternative text editors might be considered. It's important that users understand that there must be one (to set fcrontab) and I've explained how to do that in the configuration.

I also don't understand the distinction 'compile time dependency'. A text editor is absolutely required to use fcron - and that is the ONLY point in compiling it.

[LFS-User@…]

Trying to provide addtional information for Richard:

There are actually two policies involved here.

1) Packages installed in LFS shall not be annotated as dependencies in BLFS. LFS specifies that an Editor (VIM, or a substitute) is installed. Therefore, BLFS should assume the reader has a text editor installed and does not need to list this redundant item.

2) Dependencies shall only be listed in the "dependencies" section if such dependency is required to compile and install the package. In the case of Fcron, the package will compile and install without the text editor. It is only required later, so this should be annoted in a note in the configuration section.

Item 1) does not need explanation because if LFS dependecies were listed, I suspect there would need to be literally hundreds of additional dependency items added to BLFS.

Item 2) can be further seen to be policy by looking at the DocBook-utils package, which cannot be used unless a "which" program is installed. However, "which" is not listed in the dependecies, rather there is a note in the configuration section saying it is required. There are other packages with similar requirements, but none spring to mind right now.

Hope this helps.

[(none)]

Milestone 6.1 deleted