yum plugin suggestion or yum change?

[Jeff Spaleta]

On 12/5/05, Michael Favia <michael.favia at insitesinc.com> wrote:
> I think we need to realize that there is a class of computer users that
> just want things to work and wont take action when they dont. The best
> option for these users is to provide them with at least partial updates
> to do what we can for them in an automated fashion.

We all want things to "just work". I want my updates to work every
single time I ask for updates. I doubt you can define a "class" of
rational computer users who desire updates to fail this isn't
pathelogical. The desire to see things work isn't the issue. ...what
to do when things fail to work as expected..that is the issue.

The issue what the best course of action when there is a detectable
error. I am still not convinced it is in an average desktop users best
interest to allow partial updates with the current updates framework.

> Not everyone is a
> computer enthusiast and i dont think we should ask them to become one to
> run fedora.

And yet, "early adopter, enthusiast, developer" is exactly the group
the available project description singles out as the target audience.

> I'm not saying that this should be silent. AT should know something is
> wrong and the severity of it should increase with the amount of time
> that it persists.

The tools have no way to distinguish or communicate "severity" so
there is no way for AT class users to be notified of the severity of
the problem. There is no way for users to know that a partial update
would fail to install an important security update. In this regard
partial updates produce a false sense of security. "Some updates
completed, so I must be somewhat safer." is actually a worse situation
to because it can be an untrue statement.

I don't think I'm going to be able to support automated partial
updates in any form aimed at desktop users until the tools understand
how to distiguish security updates from non-security updates and know
how to communicate that difference to users when there is an update
problem that prevents a security update from installing.

> She knows to take her car into the repair shop if the
> engine light is on and i think we can manage the same effect on her
> computer.

Bad analogy to prove your point... the car doesn't try to
automatically repair itself at night.

-jef