updating Debian

[blu at vl.com (Tom Metro)]

Laura Conrad wrote:
> ...the next day the problem had stopped happening.  I don't know
> whether it was the poking I did, or the "apt-get update;apt-get
> upgrade" that I run most days, but I'm considering the problem
> solved.

Glad to hear the problem went away.

As for your manual "apt-get update;apt-get upgrade" you might want to 
look into cron-apt[1][2], which can automate this. I have it setup so 
that it downloads updated packages, and emails root, but I do a manual 
upgrade. For a desktop system you might choose to automate the upgrade 
too. As I recall, it was quick and simple to set up. I'm not sure why 
this isn't a stock component of Debian systems. I see Ubuntu has 
incorporated automated update notification.

Another useful add-on is apt-listchanges[3], which shows you the last 
portion of the changelog of the package being upgraded.

And lastly, I've often read that aptitude[4] is recommended over apt-get 
due to a supposedly superior ability to resolve dependencies and 
conflicts. I use it from the command line just like apt-get, and it 
seems to do the job well.

1. http://packages.debian.org/stable/admin/cron-apt
2. http://www.debian-administration.org/articles/162
3. http://packages.debian.org/stable/utils/apt-listchanges
4. http://packages.debian.org/stable/admin/aptitude

  -Tom

-- 
Tom Metro
Venture Logic, Newton, MA, USA
"Enterprise solutions through open source."
Professional Profile: http://tmetro.venturelogic.com/

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