[gentoo-user] Can I get a tip for reading eix output?

[gentoo-user] Can I get a tip for reading eix output?

[Harry Putnam]

Can I get a likely search string for the massive man page of eix to
understand all the info contained in its ouput.

A quick search on `output' seems to miss it.

Things like found in this output:

eix ^apr$ 

* dev-libs/apr
     Available versions:  (1)  1.2.11!t (~)1.2.12!t (~)1.3.0!t 1.3.2!t 1.3.3!t 1.3.5!t
	{debug doc ipv6 urandom}
     Homepage:            http://apr.apache.org/
     Description:         Apache Portable Runtime Library


What do the `!t' entries following the versions available mean?

Also, is it odd to have older versions under `~'?

Re: [gentoo-user] Can I get a tip for reading eix output?

[Alan McKinnon]

On Monday 15 June 2009 14:28:46 Harry Putnam wrote:
> Can I get a likely search string for the massive man page of eix to
> understand all the info contained in its ouput.

eix's man page always seemed to me to break rule #1 of user-interfaces:

"Do not expose the underlying implementation in the interface."

> A quick search on `output' seems to miss it.

You want to search on "\!t" in this case

> Things like found in this output:
>
> eix ^apr$
>
> * dev-libs/apr
>      Available versions:  (1)  1.2.11!t (~)1.2.12!t (~)1.3.0!t 1.3.2!t
> 1.3.3!t 1.3.5!t {debug doc ipv6 urandom}
>      Homepage:            http://apr.apache.org/
>      Description:         Apache Portable Runtime Library
>
>
> What do the `!t' entries following the versions available mean?

RESTRICT="test"

You can find a clue in sub-section "Slots" under main heading "OUTPUT"

> Also, is it odd to have older versions under `~'?

No, it just means the maintainer didn't change anything in the older unstable 
versions when marking the later one stable.

-- 
alan dot mckinnon at gmail dot com

Re: [gentoo-user] Can I get a tip for reading eix output?

[bn]

Alan McKinnon ha scritto:

>> What do the `!t' entries following the versions available mean?
> 
> RESTRICT="test"
> 
> You can find a clue in sub-section "Slots" under main heading "OUTPUT"

Which in turn, means?
m.

Re: [gentoo-user] Can I get a tip for reading eix output?

[Alan McKinnon]

On Tuesday 16 June 2009 14:46:53 bn wrote:
> Alan McKinnon ha scritto:
> >> What do the `!t' entries following the versions available mean?
> >
> > RESTRICT="test"
> >
> > You can find a clue in sub-section "Slots" under main heading "OUTPUT"
>
> Which in turn, means?
> m.

Before I answer, did you look for the section in the man page at all? It seems 
pretty straightforward to me:

OUTPUT
   Slots
       In contrast to usual output of versions in emerge, eix can  also  print
       slot  names  if they are nonempty and different from "0".  Whether this
       happens is determined by the PRINT_SLOTS variable and by the content of
       the FORMATSTRING.

       If  slots are printed, the slot name is separated from the version num-
       ber either with a colon, or the slot names are written in braces.   You
       can  choose  the  preferred  modes with the COLON_SLOTS variable.  Some
       Examples:

[snip]

       1.0+i+l+v+s!f!m!p!b!s!t!u!i!d
              This is version 1.0 which is subject to  PROPERTIES="interactive
              live  virtual  set" as well as RESTRICT="fetch mirror primaryuri
              binchecks strip test userpriv installsources bindist"

It should be immediately obvious from reading the first two screens of text in 
that man page that the author is utterly completely clueless about authoring 
user documentation. It's about as helpful and communicative if he'd just done 
a code dump.

With that in mind, it becomes apparent that the listed flags are all the 
initial letter of the words in the PROPERTIES and RESTRICT lists. It's 
confusing as hell, that's why I said you'd find a clue (and not a definitive 
answer). Anyways, those items in the lists are all settings/variables 
applicable to make.conf, fully described in the relevant man page.

-- 
alan dot mckinnon at gmail dot com

Re: [gentoo-user] Can I get a tip for reading eix output?

[Mike Edenfield]

On Tuesday 16 June 2009 14:46:53 bn wrote:
> Alan McKinnon ha scritto:
>>> What do the `!t' entries following the versions available mean?
>> RESTRICT="test"
>>
>> You can find a clue in sub-section "Slots" under main heading "OUTPUT"
> Which in turn, means?
> m.

If you're asking what the meaning of the RESTRICT= options are, they're 
listed in the man page for ebuild(5), including:

test   do not run src_test even if user has FEATURES=test.

which likely means that the package in question has a test suite that is 
known to be broken, on Gentoo or in general.

(Side note: the man page only has one entry for PROPERTIES although eix 
knows of at least 4.  Is there somewhere else this kind of portage 
information is documented?)

--Mike

Re: [gentoo-user] Can I get a tip for reading eix output?

[bn]

Mike Edenfield ha scritto:
>> Which in turn, means?
>> m.
> 
> If you're asking what the meaning of the RESTRICT= options are, they're
> listed in the man page for ebuild(5), including:

Oh, ok, thanks, I was having a cursory look at eix man page but it's
written in Martian, as many people are remarking here.

m.

Re: [gentoo-user] Can I get a tip for reading eix output?

[Mike Edenfield]

On 6/15/2009 8:28 AM, Harry Putnam wrote:
> Can I get a likely search string for the massive man page of eix to
> understand all the info contained in its ouput.
>
> A quick search on `output' seems to miss it.

The eix man page is way too long, and about 90% of it is only useful to 
the people trying to customize it beyond recognition, so it always takes 
me a while to find what I want to know, too.

In this case, the information you want was snuck into the examples (!!!) 
in the "Slots" section of output.  You'll notice that one of the 
examples has a series of !flags, while the description says the output 
indicates RESTRICT= options, and you get to extrapolate from there.  So, 
!t means RESTRICT="test"