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0. License

This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.

You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place, Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307 USA

You should find the copy of GNU General Public License in file /usr/doc/packware-0.3.3/COPYING.

1. What is Packware and what is not?

Packware is alternative package maintenance tool for Slackware Linux. It is not intended to replace standard tools, but primarily to add some missing features.

Packware is not another wonderful manager like RPM that knows better than you what you need to be happy. Packware does nothing but what you would do to achieve set target. You have full control over it.

I respect the idea of Slackware packages and I don't imagine other format for Slackware than .tgz. So Packware is fully compatible with standard tools. You can install a package with "packware install" as well as with "installpkg".

Packware doesn't require any additional informations in packages to do new functions that standard tools can't.

2. What can Packware do?

The main feature of Packware is checking dependencies. It is being done by default when installing packages. Of course, you can disable this function and normally install packages. Packware can also ask you whenever there is a need to install additional package to satisfy dependecies. You can check dependencies of a single file, too.

Packware can download packages from FTP servers. It may be done independently or when some package is needed to satisfy dependencies.

3. Requirements

Slackware Linux
bash.tgz (a1)
bin.tgz (a1)
fileutls.tgz (a1)
glibcso.tgz (a1)
grep.tgz (a1)
gzip.tgz (a1)
hdsetup.tgz (a1)
sh_utils.tgz (a1)
tar.tgz (a1)
txtutils.tgz (a1)
wget.tgz (n1)

4. Getting Packware

You can get Packware from SourceForge - the official server:

http://packware.sourceforge.net/packware-0.3.3.tgz

Packware is also available via FTP (sometimes may be not accessible):

ftp://traugutt.ids.czest.pl/pub/packware/packware-0.3.3.tgz

See

http://sourceforge.net/projects/packware

for recent informations about Packware.

5. Installing Packware

See INSTALL for instructions.

If you want to upgrade Packware, see UPGRADE.

6. How to use Packware?

The most common way to use Packware is "packware install package". For instance, you need vlock. You run "packware install vlock" and Packware will look for vlock and display matching packages:

vlock, 19339 B, ftp ftp.slackware.pl Choose packages (or "c" to cancel):

Then you have to tell Packware which package should be installed:

Choose packages (or "c" to cancel): 1

Packware will download and install the package.

Instead of "packware install" you can use "packware get". Different is that in first case package will be downloaded and installed, and in second case package will be only downloaded.

What about dependencies? Let's take it that you don't have all gtk1 packages installed and you want to install Galeon. You run "packware install galeon".

galeon 0.11.9 (i386), 788039 B, ftp ftp.slackware.pl
galeon 0.11.0 (i386), 788039 B, sunsite.icm.edu.pl
galeon, 788039 B, /cdrom/slakware/gtk1 Choose packages (or "c" to cancel): 1 Downloading package galeon-0.11.9-i386-1.tgz... Installing package /var/spool/packages/galeon-0.11.9-i386-1.tgz... /opt/gnome/bin/galeon-bin: ELF LSB executable or shared object, some libraries don't exist. Missing file libesd.so.0... found in esound. Install esound? [y/n/s] y Downloading package esound-0.2.22-i386-1.tgz... Executing install script for esound... Package esound has been installed successfully. Missing file libgtkembedmoz.so... found in mozilla. Install mozilla? [y/n/s] s
mozilla 0.9.5 (i386), 12433545 B, ftp ftp.slackware.pl
mozilla, 11384323 B, /cdrom/slakware/gtk1 Choose packages (or "c" to cancel): 1 Downloading package mozilla-0.9.5-i386-1.tgz... Installing package /var/spool/packages/mozilla-0.9.5-i386-1.tgz... Executing install script for mozilla... /opt/gnome/lib/mozilla/components/libgfx_gtk.so: ELF LSB executable or shared object, some libraries don't exist. Missing file libgdk_pixbuf.so.2... found in gdkpixbf. Install gdkpixbf? [y/n/s]: y Downloading package gdkpixbf.tgz... Installing package /var/spool/packages/gdkpixbf.tgz... Executing install script for gdkpixbf... Package gdkpixbf has been installed successfully. Package mozilla has been installed successfully. Missing file libgtksuperwin.so... found in mozilla (installed). Missing file libxpcom.so... found in mozilla (installed). Missing file libnspr4.so... found in mozilla (installed). Missing file libplc4.so... found in mozilla (installed). Missing file libplds4.so... found in mozilla (installed). Missing file libgdk_pixbuf.so.2... found in gdkpixbf (installed). Missing file libesd.so.0... found in esound (installed). Missing file libesd.so.0... found in esound (installed). Package galeon has been installed successfully.

Take a look for this screenshot. Packware did whole heavy work. As you can see when some package is needed, there are three options: "[y/n/s]". When you say "y", Packware will install the newest available version of needed package. When you say "s", Packware will display available versions of needed package and let you decide which one to install. If you say "n", Packware won't install needed package, but when this package is needed again, Packware will ask you.

Don't worry if you haven't installed some needed package. You can run function "depend", in our case - "packware depend /opt/gnome/bin/galeon-bin" (/opt/gnome/bin/galeon is not ELF, but shell script calling galeon-bin).

Note that there is option "-a", that means "don't ask any questions, do everything automatically". If you use it, Packware will always get the newest versions of packages and without questions install additional packages with missing libraries.

If you want to search for packages basing on their location, use option "-w". For example: "packware get -w ximian" (only entries containing string "ximian" in location field).

audiofil, 229211 B, ftp ftp.slackware.pl
bugbuddy, 228263 B, ftp ftp.slackware.pl
ghex, 215857 B, ftp ftp.slackware.pl
gnomlibs, 1946820 B, ftp ftp.slackware.pl
grip, 194168 B, ftp ftp.slackware.pl ... Choose packages (or "c" to cancel):

If you use option "-w", you don't have to give last argument, but you can. I.e. running "packware get -w ftp ftp.slackware.pl mutt" will display packages with mutt placed only on ftp ftp.slackware.pl.

You can use wildcards when calling Packware. For example: "packware get kde*".

kdegames, 8467714 B, /cdrom/slakware/kde1
kdelibs, 7566089 B, /cdrom/slakware/kde1
kdesdk, 751836 B, /cdrom/slakware/kde1
kdevelop, 3266122 B, /cdrom/slakware/kde1
kdeutils, 1636512 B, /cdrom/slakware/kde1
kdepim, 1295291 B, /cdrom/slakware/kde1
kdetoys, 1208596 B, /cdrom/slakware/kde1
kdebase, 12038014 B, /cdrom/slakware/kde1 Choose packages (or "c" to cancel):

You can also choose more than one package (separate them with spaces):

Choose packages (or "c" to cancel): 2 5 8

You can point range of packages:

Choose packages (or "c" to cancel): 2 5-8

(packages number 2, 5, 6, 7 and 8).

Don't use wildcards with option "-a".

There is one very important thing: cache. Cache is a list of available packages. Packware won't run without it. With installing Packware you get simple cache containing only packages from Slackware official release. You have to supplement your cache by running "packware cache". This will download current FTP cache and join it with Slackware CD cache and local directory (/var/spool/packages by default) cache.

It is good idea to run "packware cache" with cron daemon or whenever your Internet connection is getting up.
Current FTP cache is being built every hour by special server. Building this cache takes very long time so we do that.

There are options for "packware cache":

                                packware cache
                     _________/                \________
                   /                                     \
          download FTP cache                             -s
           make local cache        ____________________/    \__
                                 /                              \
            ___________________/__________               make local cache
          /                  /             \        make FTP cache (pw.servers)
        -l                 -r              -m
  make local cache    make FTP cache     make local cache
 take old FTP cache    (pw.servers)      make FTP cache (pw.servers)
                                         download FTP cache

You can use option "-m" when you have private servers with packages and you want to use them with public servers.
Probably you need only "packware cache" and "packware cache -s -l".

There is a simplification when you install packages directly from local directories.
When you have package ./foo-[something].tgz (./foo-version-arch-build.tgz) you don't have to type whole name, but only "packware install foo".

When you are off-line, please use option "-l" to prevent errors coming from unreachability of remote servers.

7. Contact

If you have any suggestions, ideas, if you have found a bug, if you need help or want to tell me something, feel free to mail me.

8. One more thing

I will be glad if you let me know that you use Packware. Doing:

echo "0.3.3" | mail -s "I use Packware" swiergot@traugutt.ids.czest.pl

is fine.

--
Jaroslaw Swierczynski <swiergot@traugutt.ids.czest.pl>