Linux & Slackware versions

[Lar Kaufman]

Problem with using multiple distributions for expanding and upgrading a
distribution is that vendors aren't correctly following the Linux File
System Standard (FSSTND), which you can find at:
	http://www.eg.bucknell.edu/~quinlan/fsstnd
While the purpose of such a standard is to enable you to happily mix and
match Linux resources, various vendors have found reasons to avoid doing
so.  Your choice, Red Hat, doesn't put things in /usr/local for example,
because it doesn't think software controlled by RPM distribution should 
be there.  (If you already have software there that is redundant to RedHat
installations, you now get duplicate installations.)  Other vendors do
worse.  Point is, FSSTND should be followed.  Politely ask your vendors to
comply.  Sometimes they forget that the user is supposed to receive the
benefits of standards.

Incidentally, I like Red Hat's RPM installation (2.0 and later, anyhow).
I use Red Hat distributions for both Intel and Alpha platforms.  But I
found their departure from FSSTND surprising and not justified.

-lar

 Lar Kaufman      lark at walden.com       "Any detective can follow the law.
_Running Linux_   lark at ora.com          Justice is somewhat harder to achieve."
 BUSL '98         lk at bu.edu             - Jeremy Brett, interpreting the
                  lark at conserve.org       character of Sherlock Holmes.