Date: Wed, 25 Jul 2001 08:55:38 -0400 From: Louis LeBlanc <leblanc+freebsd@acadia.ne.mediaone.net> To: freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG, freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.org Subject: Re: Patches Question Message-ID: <20010725085538.B13342@acadia.ne.mediaone.net> In-Reply-To: <20010725123310.61497.qmail@web12801.mail.yahoo.com> References: <20010725123310.61497.qmail@web12801.mail.yahoo.com>
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I doubt those patches are strictly intended to make the app run on FreeBSD, or that the app otherwise wouldn't run on FreeBSD. Many applications have patches associated with them, on all OSs. If you download a source rpm for Linux, you will often find patch files included therein. Usually these patches are intended as minor tweaks to the apps stability, or as a fix for an obscure bug that sneaked into the release tarball. As for the rare occasion that a patch is directed at a particular OS, this is often because the app was originally designed and implemented on another platform, and someone else wrote the patch to make it work on theirs. Other times, an inherent instability in the original code only becomes apparent when it is ported to a new OS. From time to time, a patch may be written by another person to add functionality to an application - like the nntp patches for mutt. This is often done when an original developer sticks to the Unix mindset (a tool should do ONE thing and do it well), but some users want to make an exception for a favorite tool or in a unique application of that tool. In the end, though, it isn't the os that makes the patches necessary, it is the app, and the inevitable imperfections in the design, implementation, etc. (We're only human after all :) HTH Lou On 07/25/01 05:33 AM, Hans Zaunere sat at the `puter and typed: > I notice that a lot of applications need to be patched > to work on FreeBSD correctly. I am wondering, from a > strictly technical standpoint, what these patches are > for. How are they common? What is it about FreeBSD > that makes these patches neseccary? > > Thank you, > > Hans Z > zaunere@yahoo.com > > __________________________________________________ > Do You Yahoo!? > Make international calls for as low as $.04/minute with Yahoo! Messenger > http://phonecard.yahoo.com/ > > To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org > with "unsubscribe freebsd-questions" in the body of the message > -- Louis LeBlanc leblanc@acadia.ne.mediaone.net Fully Funded Hobbyist, KeySlapper Extrordinaire :) http://acadia.ne.mediaone.net ԿԬ revolutionary, adj.: Repackaged. To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-questions" in the body of the message
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