| OpenSUSE 10.1 gets package update makeover |
Oct. 16, 2006
 Analysis -- We like openSUSE 10.1. Really, we do. And, it's not just us -- openSUSE has been holding onto second place, after Ubuntu, for months now on DistroWatch, and it's even been crawling close to first place in recent days.
There's just been this one little, well not so little really, problem: the revised YaST package manager, which is used for adding new programs and updating old ones, has stunk.
There have been fixes, but they've all left something to be desired. Perhaps the biggest single problem was simply this: when you have a broken package manager, how do you use it to fix itself?
It was doable. It was also painful.
Now, the openSUSE project has finally come up with the most practical fix of all: SUSE Linux 10.1 "remastered."
According to Andreas Jaeger, SUSE Linux project manager, "This release combines the 10.1 GM [Gold Master] and all online updates that we have released for 10.1 so far, including Libzypp, which should make the installing and working experience much smoother for everyone."
Libzypp is the backend program that uses RPM (RPM Package manager) packages for installing, removing, and querying program packages. This new program was an attempt by Novell to marry the best features of SUSE's yast2 package manager with Ximian's libredcarpet. It did not, in its earlier versions, work well at all.
Jaeger continued, "We have created new CD ISO images and supplied delta ISOs from the gold master."
On October 16, the openSUSE project released the complete remastered version of SUSE Linux 10.1. This included the DVD ISO. Both the CDs and DVDs include all patches for SUSE Linux 10.1 released till October 9. This replaces the original ISOs on the mirrors. There is, however, no LiveDVD or ftp installation source at this time.
"The files have a "Remastered" in their name and a symbolic link from the old name to them so that references will continue to work," Jaeger said.
"If you are running SUSE Linux 10.1 already, there is no need to download these images at all. Just do an update from our update repository to get all our security updates. This remastered media are useful for new installations," concluded Jaeger.
I beg to disagree. If you have openSUSE 10.1, and you're still having trouble updating and installing programs with YaST, download and burn the discs, and reinstall your operating system. Yes, it is possible to update the system by hand, but if you're still having trouble, this is so much easier that it's really the best way do go.
The new version can be downloaded from the openSUSE download site. At this time, DVD ISOs are available for the x86 and x86-64 architectures, while CD ISOs are also available for these platforms and the PowerPC.
-- Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols
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