[Tfug] backporting packages with Woody

[Claude Rubinson]

On Mon, Nov 24, 2003 at 10:49:13PM -0700, Andre Lehovich wrote:
> On Mon, 24 Nov 2003, Claude Rubinson wrote:
> > What you're talking about is maintaining a mixed
> > stable/testing|unstable system.
> 
> No -- Scott is talking about using Stable with selected
> backports (e.g. from http://www.fs.tum.de/~bunk/packages/).
> So he'd still have Stable's glibc but newer apps.  In a
> hybrid stable/testing system you're be forced to upgrade
> libraries in order to get the newer apps.

True.  But the real question is -- why do you want to mix packages?
Both methods achieve the same general goal; which you choose is based
upon your particular needs/desires.  In my experience, however,
backports are useful only when you require an up-to-date version of a
small number of packages.  Once you start maintaining a number of
backported/locally compiled packages (as it sounds like Scott is
doing), you've already lost the advantages that Stable gives
you--namely, well tested binaries and Debian's security updates.  At
that point, it's cleaner to move to a mixed system (or simply step up
to Testing or Unstable).

Claude