Is it just me or armel/arm repos are a mess?


Hoodoo

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I wonder did you too meet these dependency clashes trying to install any software at all, with Angstrom it would be ncurses and E17, in Debian - gvfs backends (which really sucks, Gnome bluetooth depends on it and many other things) and *build-essential*, or it's just me doing something wrong?
 
My understanding is that the main issue with the Angstrom repo is that Zaxxon was based on a version of Angstrom which is no longer current, so because Angstrom has moved on in ways that Zaxxon hasn't, the dependencies no longer match up...


- Neelix
 
Well, than we have Debian, I've been trying it for a couple of days and it seems to be the same there, the setup only has Zaxxon's kernel and modules which should not interfere with userspace too much.


//Will try Gentoo, not sure how long it would take to get a lightweigth but fully functional setup around the same kernel, and will report. :)
 
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Oh, thanks a lot, I'm sure it would save me a lot of time! I've read through documentation today and now understand how this would work in general, but the details are always the most difficult. :)
 
I have armel debian on my phone and apt-get update/upgrade has rarely failed due to dependencies so far, but my phone's debian distro is quite small so maybe, thinking of it, there wouldn't be too many dependencies after all :)


Maybe It depends on some particular package you are installing?. Sometimes I want just one particular package and about 20 others need to be installed (automatically) to get my one package to work but it's always worked (almost) flawlessly with armel debian so far.
 
@Hoodoo - Glad to be of assistance. I hope that it proves to be useful in the long run!
 
Sometimes I want just one particular package and about 20 others need to be installed (automatically) to get my one package to work but it's always worked (almost) flawlessly with armel debian so far.

Yeah, that's dependencies.


I have Squeeze on my mail/xmpp/other fun stuff server and it works great (I love neatly packaged Perl modules best, and well documented configuration files), but not at Pandora.
 
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(I love neatly packaged Perl modules best, and well documented configuration files), but not at Pandora.

Hehe, but at least you love the Pandora right? :D
 
Shure. Even if I were to use only the applications which are in Pandora repos, it would still be the best handheld ever.


//So far I have console working in Gentoo, reading archwiki beginner's guide, Gentoo handbook and Debian on SD article to set up minimal X environment.
 
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The big problem is that we're using openhandhelds repo's for the version of Angstrom in Zaxxon, when we should just have our own repo's - with the packages we built for use in Zaxxon - up on a server somewhere instead - this would mean we wouldn't have any regression issues, we'd be able to do a proper opkg update, and things wouldn't get borked when Angstrom decide to yank things away from us ..


But the team that is producing this Hotfix have heard this argument enough times now, and ignored the problem due to work load, that its just really a dogs breakfast, currently. If the Hotfix build binaries would at least be put up on a repo somewhere, we could fix this, but alas ..
 
It's not like I'm bitching about Pandora/Angstrom team, again, there's Debian armel repo which gives me the same amount of broken dependencies, which I believe have nothing to do with the kernel. I think if I tried OpenSUSE it would be the same there, or even worse.


That workaround/new feature with pnds running from an SD card works good and is quite userfriendly given that you always keep the same cards in the same slots.


I just wonder, maybe ARM repos just have worse maintenance. They definitely have less packages.


Anyway, I've installed X11 with omapfb driver for Gentoo yesterday (left it compiling overnight) and it seems like it would work properly as soon as I build a window manager for it and steal keyboard configuration and such from Angstrom. I use FVWM on my other computers and I wonder how it would work with Pandora with all these custom keybindings and window rules one can assign and nice things like binding a command to touching the edge of the screen, basic gestures and such.
 
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The big problem is that we're using openhandhelds repo's for the version of Angstrom in Zaxxon, when we should just have our own repo's - with the packages we built for use in Zaxxon - up on a server somewhere instead - this would mean we wouldn't have any regression issues, we'd be able to do a proper opkg update, and things wouldn't get borked when Angstrom decide to yank things away from us ..


But the team that is producing this Hotfix have heard this argument enough times now, and ignored the problem due to work load, that its just really a dogs breakfast, currently. If the Hotfix build binaries would at least be put up on a repo somewhere, we could fix this, but alas ..

As always... hey torpor, lend a hand ;)


"Ignored" is a disingenuous term; the real term is 'we had few hands, now we have less hands, theres not enough hands to do what we'd all like' (by less hands, I mean, I'm 'out' for large scale things for awhile.. twins in two weeks .. tick tock :) You're welcome to work with ED on building up a repo, or starting your own; you've offered before but didn't follow through ;) (note that it has been done.. ED has numerous times done full firmware upates using just opkg from our own repo, but it never went official.)


jeff
 
Skeezix, if I had access to your official build server, I'd lend a hand .. but its just not a solution for me to build things entirely from scratch in an attempt to resolve the situation. The packages for Zaxxon are still out there on the build server - these just need to be put up on a server where its possible to "opkg update" from .. its one thing to build the Hotfix images, and there is no question that it should be done, but the missing step is to put all the packages from the release build out there as well - not just the stuff in the image, but all the repository-bound stuff, too.


Honestly, I keep coming back to this, because I want to help, but all I can do is try to explain what the problem is - its not reasonable to ask me to download a full Angstrom kit, try to rebuild it so that it exactly matches the hotfix configuration, and add a repo of the results. The problem is, the build server where the hotfix images are built needs to be told to export the packages out for opk repo use as well ..

(note that it has been done.. ED has numerous times done full firmware upates using just opkg from our own repo, but it never went official.)

So please sir, can we make it official - or at least 'unsupported, there for developers', and if any problems arise I will do my best to support the community with any issues that come up.
 
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You can help; ED is approachable :)


Like I said, he had opkg update _working from Pandora_ before, so he's done it, but he just can't keep up with it, or doesn't know how to 'best practice' set it up.


If you want to help out, PM him.. I'm sure he'd give you an account on the box to poke around, and he could fill you in on how it all builds now and where the bits are.


So its not like no one is listening,, its all there if you want to help out. Its in your court .. PM him, and go to it ;) He's biult all the bits and bobs before, so its probably not too hard for you to fix it up and make it more permanent/automated.


Maybe its already there and still working, just not published; go PM ED, try it out on your unit to make sure it works (should), and then you can broadcast the news.


jeff
 
Our own feed does work, yes.


However, it deinstalls packages that are not in there when you update (don't ask me why Angström is doing that), so if you installed anything outside the OS (community codec packs, any other ipks installed from somewhere), you will lose them with any update.


Our feed just includes files that the main OS includes, so it would only work for Hotfix updates.


torpor, you brought that issue up a couple of times.


I remember discussing with you that I'd love to have a full feed however I have no idea how to create the feeds with different categories or servers.


You wanted to look into this but I never got anything back so far...


I'd either love to...


a) Have a feed from our OS where ALL packages are included (not just the one for the default OS). I have no idea how to tell our build server to do that.


B) Have a setup that updates from our server but doesn't remove packages it doesn't know of.


Both is fine for me.


DJWillis is still working on oe-next. While it's slow and takes time, it will have our very own feeds.
 
*crickets*


torpor, its come up a few times; you want something, you offer, but you don't follow through when we accept ;) Come on, man up (or stop offering, since its not a real offer in that capacity ;) (I mean, no problem if you can't do it due to time, but you want to, such is life; I just want to be clear .. we're with you and accept, but it seems a tease as you keep offering and we keep accepting, but we never move forward ;)


jeff
 
I discussed this with aTc, who has already worked out how to resolve the issue:

<aTc> well, to use the pandora feeds :


<aTc> delete everything from /etc/opkg/ , except arch.conf and opkg.conf


<aTc> then create a pandora-feed.conf , and put this in it :


<aTc> src/gz all http://www.openpando...ds/unstable/all


<aTc> src/gz armv7a http://www.openpando...nstable//armv7a


<aTc> src/gz omap3-pandorahttp://www.openpandora.org/feeds/unstable//omap3-pandora


<aTc> then it's just "opkg update" and "opkg upgrade" and done

.. and of course, this should only be done if you've booted from SD Card ..


But, it makes me wonder something: why isn't this in the official image already? Perhaps thats *all* that needs to be done - point opkg at our repo instead of Angstroms, and .. success?
 
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I've looked through indices there, looks like there's very few packages there which are not installed on the Pandora already.


For me, the whole point of dealing with Debian/Angstrom/Gentoo is in getting packages which are not installed by default.
 
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