Re: [gentoo-user] Python vs C++ [was: Gentoo Rules]

[Raphael]

Hi everyone,

    I don't think the programming language is the problem here. The
problem is that some of Portage architectural decisions have a
negative impact on performance. Probably because the developers were
focused on minimizing dependencies (i.e. file system based
persistence) and bandwidth consumption (i.e. using rsync for updating
packages).

    So, even if Portage was recoded in C++, performance improvements
would be marginal and the cost in man-hours would be too high. It
would take months before reaching the maturity level Portage has now
and all this time could be better spent trying to find solutions to
its architectural bottlenecks.

    I believe that a good solution would be evolving Portage to use
different forms of storage, like databases or even LDAP. In a home
desktop, you could use SQLite, which is light weight. In a Office
enviroment, you could use a larger database, like MySQL or PostgreSQL.
In this second case, it would even make sharing the package list
faster, since the only current method is sharing it over NFS.

    I understand that doing so could bloat Portage dependencies, but
it is, IMHO, a good way to improve its speed.

Regards,

Raphael
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