Currently, LM users are largely limited to applications distributed as Ubuntu packages. Vanilla Debian packages may be installed, often with unpredictable results. Some applications are available in official Ubuntu repositories, but many such packages are years behind the current release of the application or library they provide, and many applications are not included in the Ubuntu repositories. PPAs and plain Debian-style repositories are administrated by some project maintainers, but not others, and are clumsy to use by virtue of needing to be added to the local configuration.
Meanwhile, other options for distributing Linux applications, such as FlatPak and AppImage, come with serious limitations.
To enhance availability of packages to users of Ubuntu and its derivatives, the Pacstall system has emerged, modeled afteir the Arch User Repository (AUR) created by users of Arch Linux.
Pacstall improves the availability of applications available to Ubuntu users in the form of Aptitude packages by providing the target system with build recipes rather than built packages. Removing from the distribution side the burden of repeatedly publishing new versions of built packages, more applications are available to the user through a high level of automation.
Problem
A toolchain is provided for Pacstall package operations, but the tools integrate poorly with regular Aptitude operations.
Manjaro, derived form Arch Linux, offers the Pamac utility, which integrates support for native Arch packages (generally managed by Pacman), with management of AUR packages.
Request
Requested is integration of Pacstall support into Mint Update, for unifying installations and upgrades from Debian and Pacstall repositories through a single tool included in Linux Mint.
Notes
Integration of Pacstall into the utilities of the core distribution confers advantages to users not available through auxiliary tools, and also standardizes the solution as a feature of the platform, such as to inform the design of other tools.
Background
Currently, LM users are largely limited to applications distributed as Ubuntu packages. Vanilla Debian packages may be installed, often with unpredictable results. Some applications are available in official Ubuntu repositories, but many such packages are years behind the current release of the application or library they provide, and many applications are not included in the Ubuntu repositories. PPAs and plain Debian-style repositories are administrated by some project maintainers, but not others, and are clumsy to use by virtue of needing to be added to the local configuration.
Meanwhile, other options for distributing Linux applications, such as FlatPak and AppImage, come with serious limitations.
To enhance availability of packages to users of Ubuntu and its derivatives, the Pacstall system has emerged, modeled afteir the Arch User Repository (AUR) created by users of Arch Linux.
Pacstall improves the availability of applications available to Ubuntu users in the form of Aptitude packages by providing the target system with build recipes rather than built packages. Removing from the distribution side the burden of repeatedly publishing new versions of built packages, more applications are available to the user through a high level of automation.
Problem
A toolchain is provided for Pacstall package operations, but the tools integrate poorly with regular Aptitude operations.
Manjaro, derived form Arch Linux, offers the Pamac utility, which integrates support for native Arch packages (generally managed by Pacman), with management of AUR packages.
Request
Requested is integration of Pacstall support into Mint Update, for unifying installations and upgrades from Debian and Pacstall repositories through a single tool included in Linux Mint.
Notes
Integration of Pacstall into the utilities of the core distribution confers advantages to users not available through auxiliary tools, and also standardizes the solution as a feature of the platform, such as to inform the design of other tools.