Fwd: Re: [vox-tech] debian confusion

[Bill Kendrick]

Cam posted this from a non-subscribed address, so it got discarded by
Mailman.  Fwd'ing it to the list on his behalf.


Date: Thu, 28 Jun 2007 15:46:33 -0700
From: Cam Ellison <cam at ellisonpsychology.ca>
Subject: Re: [vox-tech] debian confusion
To: lugod's technical discussion forum <vox-tech at lists.lugod.org>

Gandalf Parker wrote:
>On Thu, 28 Jun 2007, Dylan Beaudette wrote:
>>
>>my apt sources point to 'testing' and my debian_version file
>>says 'lenny/sid' ???
>>
>>any tips on fixing this old beast?
>
>Debian recently went thru an upshift of versions. My "testing" became 
>"Etch". So wouldnt "testing" become a new version of "testing"?
>Maybe it has to be started over?
>Just guessing.

"sid" is Toy Story (and Debian) code for unstable.

A couple of suggestions that might work (do one or the other):
(1) You can set up a preferences file: /etc/apt/preferences to allow 
both testing and unstable.  Its contents might look like this:

Package: *
Pin: release a=testing
Pin-Priority: 500
#
Package: *
Pin: release a=unstable
Pin-Priority: 100
#
Package: *
Pin: release a=stable
Pin-Priority: 50

After writing this, do apt-get update, then apt-get upgrade.  This will 
give apt the opportunity to select from any of the three distributions, 
but the preference goes to testing.

(2) You can force Debian to install a particular package by specifying 
the distribution, thus:

apt-get install debianutils/testing

The other thing you can do if things are a bit bunged up is:

apt-get -f install

Sometimes, particularly when doing a major upgrade, dependencies and 
configurations get in each others' ways, and it is necessary to make a 
second pass (even a third) to get it all to settle down.

HTH

Cam

-- 
Cam Ellison, Ph.D. R.Psych. #1417

Cam Ellison & Associates Ltd.
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----- End forwarded message -----

-- 
-bill!
bill at newbreedsoftware.com
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