[gentoo-dev] Re: Dependencies on system packages

[Ryan Hill]

Ryan Hill <dirtyepic@g.o> wrote:

> Ciaran McCreesh <ciaranm@×××××××.org> wrote:

> > It's quite simple. You don't do it unless you are fully aware of the
> > consequences. If you have to ask, you aren't fully aware of the
> > consequences so you mustn't do it.
>
> That's a flawed argument.  Not knowing doesn't prevent you from
> asking, and asking will inform you of the consequences, assuming the
> asked isn't a complete tool.

Let me try this more diplomatically.  How are we supposed to know if a
package that's depending on a system package is a bug or an exception if
we have no idea what the exception(s) is/are?

Stephen Bennett wrote:
> If you don't know about the unwritten yet near universal exception
> clause then you shouldn't be invoking it.

If it's universal, then why isn't it written somewhere?  After all
this, we *still* haven't gotten an answer to why some packages
outside of the system target are depending on zlib.  Is this a bug?  If
not, what's the reason it's there?  Let's document this reason, so we
don't have to go through this again in the future.  It's that simple.