Jeremy Olexa wrote:
> Ryan Hill wrote:
>> On Mon, 22 Sep 2008 22:03:53 -0500
>> Jeremy Olexa <darkside@g.o> wrote:
>>
>>> I'm thinking that a virtual/fonts package would be a good addition to
>>> the tree. We have hit this issue in Gentoo Prefix where any font
>>> package would satisfy a dependency. I also have an open bug where a
>>> package depends on corefonts but the reporter has stated that another
>>> fonts package will work. Frankly, I would rather *not* depend on the
>>> proprietary M$ fonts, myself. So my proposal would be to make every
>>> fonts package satisfy some virtual and then other packages can depend
>>> on that virtual to satisfy the need for *some* fonts. I just don't
>>> have a game plan for the best way to do it.
>>>
>>> Do you people agree that this could be useful?
>>> Does anyone have a suggestion for the best way to get it done?
>>
>> Is it something like currently deps on corefonts but liberation-fonts
>> works?  I think there was a bug open somewhere for that at some point.
>> I could see a virtual on a some agreed upon choice of core fonts, but
>> to have every font package in it...
> 
> Yes, that is my open bug that I have at the moment. bug #215661. But it
> is not the first time I have come across this. Maybe every font package
> satisfying a virtual is silly, I don't know. Maybe there are only a
> couple of package which can be interchanged, is it known which ones? If
> that was the case, then it is trivial to do || ( corefonts
> liberation-fonts ) and the case is closed here.
> 
>>
>> There are also lot of packages that depend on ttf-bitstream-vera that
>> might work just as easily with dejavu.
>>
> 
> I have heard this as well.
> 
> 
I think the proposal for a virtual/fonts is very useful. I don't know if
there are any cases where bitmap fonts would be needed instead of
truetype fonts. But if that is the case, we should make separate
virtuals for those.

I think it would be best to add the more common font packages to the
fonts virtual, and not all. I'd propose something along the lines of:
|| ( dejavu liberation-fonts ttf-bitstream-vera corefonts )

-- 
Ben de Groot
Gentoo Linux developer (lxde, media, desktop-misc)
Gentoo Linux Release Engineering PR liaison
__________________________________________________

yngwin@g.o
http://ben.liveforge.org/
irc://chat.freenode.net/#gentoo-media
irc://irc.oftc.net/#lxde
__________________________________________________