[Python-modules-team] Bug#547437: Bug#547437: too broad dependencies

[W. Martin Borgert]

Quoting "Sandro Tosi" <morph at debian.org>:
> On Sat, Sep 19, 2009 at 20:36, W. Martin Borgert <debacle at debian.org> wrote:
>> E.g. we use matplotlib in a web application, which is a common
>> use case, so why would we need Tcl/Tk|GTK+|wxGTK|Qt3|Qt4? Is it
>
> I'm sorry, but being able to use a GUI lib to show plots is on of the
> core aspects of mpl, and I can already see bugs coming because one
> doesn't install recommends and then mpl stops working.

If you absolutely do not trust our users to understand the Debian
packaging system :~), would you consider splitting matplotlib into a
"basic" package (e.g. "python-matplotlib-nox"), and the common one
("python-matplotlib") that depends on the first one and the GUI
toolkits?

That way users who just install python-matplotlib would still depend
on a GUI toolkit and the strange guys like me just use the "basic"
package. Other packages have the same split, see emacs22-nox,
gnuplot-nox, vim-nox, vlc-nox etc.

Would that be an option? If so, I would try to prepare a patch and
attach it here.

>> impossible that matplotlib works without python-excelerator? Why
>
> moved to suggests

Thanks!

> It's already in suggests and it's not installed by default: this is
> the output in a clean chroot

OK, that was probably an error an my side.

Btw. and OT: For a server deployment with Django I'll need a Lenny
backport of matplotlib, w/o GUI toolkit :~), so don't be surprised if
I upload matplotlib >= 0.99.0-2 to bpo, as soon as it is in testing.