Being Newer Than Red Hat

[Paul Iadonisi]

On Mon, 2002-08-12 at 15:02, Kent Borg wrote:
> Strategy question.  What is the best way to install a newer version of
> something I already have from Red Hat?  Specifically, I have cvs
> 1.11.1p1 from Red Hat but want to upgrade to 1.11.2.  Do I overwrite
> the old /usr/bin version and risk confusing Red Hat when I eventually
> attempt an upgrade to a newer version of Red Hat?  Do I install a new
> /usr/local/bin version and hope I don't get confused between the two?

  Wow, a packaging discussion that didn't generate a flamewar. 
Awesome!  ;-)
  Anyhow, I would just like to nod in agreement with, I think, all of
the responses to your query.  Packaging is a *good thing* even though it
can be a headache if you are trying to do things you shouldn't be trying
to do ;-).  Dependencies are good for catching potential problems with
incompatible libraries or other conflicts that a './configure;make;make
install' isn't going to catch.  People who complain about 'rpm
dependency hell' usually don't have an appreciation for why those
dependencies exist.
  Anyhow, I would like to offer my assistance for any rpm building
questions you may have.  Post to this list for better coverage, but I've
been building rpms in my^W lieu of sleep for some time now.  Even to the
point of ripping apart Red Hat's kernel src.rpm and rebuilding it with
custom patches.  You can also check out my introductory presentation I
gave to GNHLUG back in March at
http://wiki.gnhlug.org/twiki2/bin/view/Www/Presentations at the bottom
of the list.
-- 
-Paul Iadonisi
 Senior System Administrator
 Red Hat Certified Engineer / Local Linux Lobbyist
 Ever see a penguin fly?  --  Try Linux.
 GPL all the way: Sell services, don't lease secrets