Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

debian is not a trustworthy source of software if you expect it to be close to the upstream version.

They will change things around completely (MySQL/MariaDB), cause terrible bugs (OpenSSL), create crazy/renamed/weird versions (apache httpd -> apache2), etc etc.

Frankly you are lucky to get something this close to real java and not a shell script wrapping GCJ or whatever.



>And any day Debian decides to stop using Foo, is always a happy day for Foo's upstream. Finally, the stream of bugs matching the below template will stop spamming Foo's bug tracker:

>> Debian X.x (stable) >> foo <5-10 years old release> >> >> <XXth duplicate of a 7 year old issue that has been fixed 3+ years ago | 5 year old Debian-only bug caused by a Debian patch>.

>The only appropriate reply to such bugs IMHO is:

>> Fuck off. And don't come back before switching to a distribution >> with a non-broken definition of stability.

>Unfortunately, most upstreams always try to stay civil.




Consider applying for YC's Summer 2026 batch! Applications are open till May 4

Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: