Outdated snap packages – improving Ubuntu snap store

https://popey.com/blog/2023/09/outdated-snap-packages/

by popey • 3 years ago

2 2 3 years ago

Once upon a time, Linux package managers had a monopoly on their assigned systems. You installed stuff with rpm on Red Hat-style systems, you installed stuff with apt on Debian-style systems, and so forth. I ran Ubuntu and I installed debs using apt. If it didn't install via apt, then I wasn't interested. Sometimes, I'd need to install software by compiling from source and `make install` and then I'd make a grumpy little sysadmin note that this rogue software will not play nicely with apt.

So the package manager had a central point of control over the system, and you could know what files had been installed by a package, and you'd know the update status of them all, and of course, you could update one package or all of them with a single command.

This was too good for the Linux world, so when containers became the new hotness, I was excited to see Docker work, but I could see the hand writing on the wall, because Docker also wanted to manage software packages and do its own updates and have its own sort of secret thing going on in a corner of the filesystem.

Sure enough, pseudo-package managers have proliferated, and we have flatpaks, Docker, snaps, AppImage, etc. It's quickly come to a point where you can't tell how some software was installed, and you don't know how to update it, or if that's happening automatically.

I think things will shake out in the future, but for now, we're in Babel and the tower is collapsing. Was good while it lasted.

XxCincinnatusxX• 3 years ago

Off topic a little I think, but can someone tell me why apps from Snaps will allow you to change the way an icon looks but apps from Flatpak will not? Thanks

Outdated snap packages – improving Ubuntu snap store

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