Re: [TCLUG:15481] Faeriedist

["Carl Wilhelm Soderstrom" <carls@agritech.com>]

>It bothers me that I have to look in /usr/man, /usr/local/man,
>/usr/doc,/usr/local/doc/,/usr/share/man,/usr/local/share/man,
>etc. just to find documentation!  How horrible is that?
        however, docs for a given app are often all in one place (which you
can find with 'locate').
        but you're right; the multifarous places docs can be, is confusing
at times. this is why I like man pages. one doesn't need to know where
they're coming from. :) perhaps an "uber-man" like I mentioned yesterday,
would help with this (by transparently serving up documentation, from
wherever it may reside).

>Now, for my customized system at home:
>/web --> All apache
        personally, i'm opposed to adding things to the / dir unless
absolutely necessary. more stuff to keep track of, if one is moving whole
trees around. this is the main reason I despise /opt
        but it's your own rope, to hang yourself with if you choose. ;>

>Or perhaps how it would be on Faeriedist:
>/etc/httpd --> Apache configuration
>/var/httpd --> Apache var stuff
>/opt/httpd (maybe) --> Apache executables, and htdocs
        why /opt? what's /opt supposed to be for in the first place? my
understanding is that it's "options"... which is close enough to /usr/local
(stuff you install yourself, as opposed to being prepackaged) that there's
no good reason not to combine them.
        my understanding is that _executables go under /usr_. this keeps
them isolated from the rest of the system (so for instance, you can mount
the /usr partition read-only, lessening the chance of accidental or
intentional damage). this also keeps them together in one place, so you
don't have to hunt them down if you want to move them all.

>I do think that having everything in /opt/httpd would be good, too.  At
>work, we can pick up and move whole installations of software at any
>time by moving *one* directory.  (and creating a symlink)  That capability
>is extremely handy!
        you have a point there. if it works for you, enjoy. 
        I think I agree with Eric, tho... if httpd is just one of many
daemons, treat it like part of an organized system, rather than an individual.

one of the big differences between UNIX and Windows; is that UNIX organizes
files by function... executables go in /usr, data goes in /home, variables
(logs, locks, spools) go in /var. Windows groups files by application...
\windows, \mailer, \office, \winzip, ad nauseum...
        there are advantages to both ways... if you just want to move one
application; yeah, it's sensible to group the files by the application (but
I still think applications and their data should be widely separated).
however, aren't package managers supposed to help you with that? (it's not
universally helpful, but they do help in a lot of cases).
        I suppose one could compare the practice of putting files in
\windows\system with putting obscure (and needed!) things in \lib or the
like; but UNIX apps seem much less guilty of this than Windows apps (for
whatever reason).

your arguments have validity. I see why you do things the way you do, and I
see many advantages to it. (such as if you wanted to "jail" your httpd and
web pages; it makes a lot of sense to do what you do).
I just don't think they're right for my situation (at least not now). :)

let's thank the flexibility of UNIX and Open Source for letting us do this
sort of thing. :)

Carl Soderstrom
System Administrator    307 Brighton Ave. 
Minnesota DHIA	        Buffalo, MN	
carls@agritech.com      (763) 682-1091