this file could be installed by the install cd ... basically, slackware/deb/redhat have one so why can we ? :)
spanky, what's the version of gentoo you're running? (note, I'm not asking what version of the ISO you used to install it, I'm asking right now what version of gentoo are you running?)
if you're posting this question for arguement sake, then i must say that i cant really say im running a certain 'version' of gentoo since portage is keeping it up-to-date with all the latest components ... but if you are posting this question for arguement sake, then i might point out that slackware/deb both have an /etc/<distro>-version file even though with deb you can keep the whole system up-to-date and with slackware you can install packages from 8.1 onto a 8.0 system w/out re-installing ... the idea of having and /etc/gentoo-version file just makes me feel warm and fuzzy even if its just `echo 1.3>/etc/gentoo-version`
Here's a warm-n-fuzzy concept that might make everyone happy... echo 1.3 > /usr/portage/profiles/default-1.0-gcc3/gentoo-version # remember that /etc/make.profile is a symlink of the /usr/portage/profiles/x directory ln -s /etc/make.profile/gentoo-version /etc/gentoo-version This way as a user changes profiles, or the profile gets updated (along with the packages in portage -- we do all keep updated, right?) so does the version.
It's is easy for do, but.. Why? /etc/gentoo-version only will be the iso version that you use for install it please a solid argument?
well, the iso version wouldnt be a problem if we do what Brian Rozmierski suggested (which is quite a good idea, i like it ;]) as for 'why', the only reason is 'every other distro does' :) besides, its less than 10 bytes of data, and it takes up a whole 1 inode on disk (assuming ext2 based fs)
yes, i'm like too the idea of Brian R. but i don't find the utilite of that. For example in Debian Sid the debian-version is the same in woody, you think that only a 2 hours after we relase a iso, we have a new version of the system, so the gentoo-version only can have the version of the iso no of the system. I know that is easy to do and only is a inode, but y repeat... Why?
The Version of other distris are depending on libc/glibc. They really need them, cause they mostly use precompiled packages. The idea with /etc/gentoo-version only on the iso version is great and i like it. The other way is to keep an other version file, but not really a version like 1, 2 or 3. It's more like a date and maybe a time, when the last rsync update and emerge update has been done. Thats the only thinkable solve.
well... really we need the etc/gentoo-version(iso version)? about the date of updates... do you really do a complete 'emerge world -u'? i normaly do a 'emerge world -up' and only update the apps that i need update. In the case thet put the date of this updates, Why? we can put too the date of the last 'emerge -u system' but really you do it? normaly we do 'emerge -u wolrd' for that. please, really don't is a problem do a /etc/gentoo-version, but really we need it? and Why? "because other distros have it" don't is valid.
i'm behind a proxy so i download the daily snapshot, untar it. then i do: emerge --update emerge --update world it's no work for me make this /etc/gentoo-version only on the Iso version
SpankY, can I tut at you?
ah well very few liked the idea ;)
Brian R says his idea is for when the profiles are updated... However the profiles are part of the Portage tree and will be updated in "emerge rsync". And I agree with everyone else on this issue... /etc/gentoo-version would just have the ISO version. Would be pointless otherwise.
how would a gentoo version be defined? 1.0 to 1.2 are releases in my eyes, not versions. if updated regularily, a system installed from one of these releases will be "current" like the other ones if treated similar. 1.3* differs because of the other profile being used. this is the real barrier between releases and versions. conclusion: the profile being used is the version. so we have kind of gentoo-version already: it is called /etc/make.profile and it's value is the target of the link. it just would be nice to humans to rename that link to gentoo-version. any popular script identifying various linux dists can easily look at make.profile and check the link being used. so besides the name being different we have such a thingy already.
*** Bug 9558 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
Moving these so we can remove the "Install CD" component from "Gentoo Linux". I apologize to everyone for this spam, but according to the bugzilla developers, this is the only reasonable way to do this.
