Comments on: Links 14/06/2009: Linux Multi-touch, KDE4 for PCLOS http://boycottnovell.com/2009/06/14/linux-multi-touch-kde/ Exploring the reality behind exclusionary deals with Microsoft and their subtle (yet severe) implications Fri, 19 Mar 2010 19:54:29 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: David Gerard http://boycottnovell.com/2009/06/14/linux-multi-touch-kde/comment-page-1/#comment-66438 David Gerard Mon, 15 Jun 2009 08:45:30 +0000 http://boycottnovell.com/?p=13134#comment-66438 Yeah, diffed updates will be reinvented until they work well ;-) because network is so much the limiting factor in practice. Debian and Ubuntu could have had <a href="https://wiki.ubuntu.com/apt-sync" rel="nofollow">apt-sync</a> for a while, but approximately no-one uses it. Ubuntu is <a href="https://blueprints.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+spec/rsync-based-deb-downloads" rel="nofollow">doing something similar</a> with a view to having it in 9.10. The use case is people on 3G (where every byte costs) and rural India (where you're on dialup when you even have a phone line). <a href="https://wiki.edubuntu.org/AptSyncInKarmicSpec" rel="nofollow">See also</a>. Yeah, diffed updates will be reinvented until they work well ;-) because network is so much the limiting factor in practice.

Debian and Ubuntu could have had apt-sync for a while, but approximately no-one uses it.

Ubuntu is doing something similar with a view to having it in 9.10. The use case is people on 3G (where every byte costs) and rural India (where you’re on dialup when you even have a phone line). See also.

]]> By: twitter http://boycottnovell.com/2009/06/14/linux-multi-touch-kde/comment-page-1/#comment-66435 twitter Mon, 15 Jun 2009 02:29:07 +0000 http://boycottnovell.com/?p=13134#comment-66435 Red Hat's Presto is interesting and impressive. Debian's version of that is <a href="http://www.debian.org/CD/jigdo-cd/" rel="nofollow">Jigsaw Download</a>, which uses rsync, <a href="http://www.samba.org/rsync/how-rsync-works.html" rel="nofollow">a program that syncs by only sending portions of updated files that differ</a>. This is not quite as elegant as having precomputed diff files, but it achieves the same kind of bandwith reduction. Jigsaw Download was made to get around the fact that many Debian repositories eliminated install CDs because net install was so much more efficient. It was thought better to leave packages on repository mirrors to be pulled on demand rather than send out giga bytes worth of binaries that would never be installed. Precomputed diff files could make mirror syncing more efficient and less cpu intensive. Another level of efficiency would be for institutions to maintain local repositories that only contain the packages they actually use. These thoughts are obvious, so I'm sure someone is working on them. Red Hat’s Presto is interesting and impressive. Debian’s version of that is Jigsaw Download, which uses rsync, a program that syncs by only sending portions of updated files that differ. This is not quite as elegant as having precomputed diff files, but it achieves the same kind of bandwith reduction. Jigsaw Download was made to get around the fact that many Debian repositories eliminated install CDs because net install was so much more efficient. It was thought better to leave packages on repository mirrors to be pulled on demand rather than send out giga bytes worth of binaries that would never be installed. Precomputed diff files could make mirror syncing more efficient and less cpu intensive.

Another level of efficiency would be for institutions to maintain local repositories that only contain the packages they actually use. These thoughts are obvious, so I’m sure someone is working on them.

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