[pkg-boost-devel] Bug#473973: Bug#473973: libboost-python-dev: rdeps fails?to built - python packaging seems weird

Sune Vuorela reportbug at pusling.com
Wed Apr 2 20:51:35 UTC 2008


[My knowledge of python is nearly zero - and I don't plan to subscribe 
to -python] 

On Wednesday 02 April 2008, Steve M. Robbins wrote:

> You might want to consider doing so; this allows you to be
> clear as to which version of python you support.  Or, indeed,
> build support for both 2.4 and 2.5.

I just need python 2.2 or 2.3 or 2.4 or 2.5 or .. (maybe even 2.0 or 2.1 
suffices)

It would require quite big changes to support multiple versions - and I don't 
see much gain for it.

> OK, so this is using libboost-python-dev 1.34.1-10, which has the bug
> previously mentioned: if you don't have python installed prior to
> installing libboost-python-dev, you don't get the symlinks.
>
> The sequence shown in the build log indicates that no python-dev
> package is installed at all.  This is due to another change made to
> support multiple python runtimes.  The libboost-python-dev package
> used to depend on python-dev.  Now that it supports two runtimes, it
> doesn't make sense to depend on both.  Arguably it could depend on the
> default, but what I did instead is weaken the dependencies to suggest.
> This breaks your build because the suggestions are not installed.

I think you *must* depend on at least one python -dev thingie. Do you need to 
manually change stuff to support a new python version ?
But can't python-dev | python2.4-dev | python2.5-dev be appropriate ?


> 4.  For a package that build-depends on libboost-python-dev, what is
> the recommended strategy: to hack the build config and use the -py24
> and -py25 library variants, or to rely on the symlinks and having the
> correct Python installed?  Naively, I'd expect the latter strategy
> for those who simply need to support the default Python version,
> and the former for those who support all Python runtimes.

I would also expect the naively strategy to work.


On a side note not related to this at all, I am a bit curious. How is it 
expected to be handled when support for python-2.4 will be dropped? Just hope 
that it matches a boost soname change?


/Sune





More information about the pkg-boost-devel mailing list