[maemo-community] [Council] Package categories

[From: Simon Pickering]

> >
> >> The second enhancement is to allow "Section:
> >> user/<package>/<maemo_section>" - this means that a package will
> >> appear only in a list if its parent (<package>) is 
> installed. So, you
> >> could have:
> >>
> >>     Package: canola2
> >>     Section: user/multimedia
> >>
> >>     Package: canola2-theme-red
> >>     Section: user/canola2/themes
> >
> > Typo I hope, canola2 shouldn't be a top-level section name imo.
> 
> Agreed. And it wouldn't be. This would result in "canola2-theme-red"
> appearing in the "Themes" section; but only if canola2 was installed.
> There're no sub-categories with this suggestion, just using the
> "Section" to represent additional UI dependencies.
> 
> > Better this:
> >
> >    Package: canola2-theme-red
> >    Section: user/multimedia/canola2/themes
> 
> ...however, here, you have sub-categories. That'd require a total
> revamp of the Application Manager, AIUI. Just hiding canola2-theme-red
> (from "themes") until canola2 is installed (from "multimedia") would
> solve the use case IMHO.

Ah, I understand. I still think it would be annoying to not be able to
browse all available packages (including any plugins and the like) without
installing the main package.

> If the Application Manager could be changed to support arbitrary-depth
> package sections, then I'd much prefer your approach of sub-sections
> (although that may make the rules and parsing of comma-separated
> sections harder ;-)). I suspect that's a lot of code.

Even if it does require writing a bit of extra code I think it would be
worth it. 

While we're at it we should look at other things such as multiple select for
installation/removal and updating the list item by item (rather than
destroying the whole thing and then re-creating it). But these are
off-topic.

> One thing which - again - we come back to as a community: Nokia have
> plans for the entirety of the UI in Fremantle. This'll include Hildon
> App Mgr. There's no point the community helping to develop patches for
> this if the UI is going to be rewritten to better fit with Fremantle's
> look & feel anyway. So, I've CC'ed Marius for any input he might have
> on the direction of the App Mgr which could impact the direction, as a
> community, we think this should take.
> 
> Cheers,
> 
> Andrew


Cheers,

Simon