Bug#819371: Please depend on "firefox | firefox-esr" rather than the reverse

[Antonio Trueba]

On Sun, 27 Mar 2016 10:43:02 -0700 Josh Triplett wrote:
> Package: gnome-core
> Version: 1:3.14+4
> Severity: wishlist
>
> gnome-core depends on "firefox-esr | firefox". However, the firefox
> package already only exists in unstable; users of testing and stable
> only have firefox-esr available. If gnome-core depended on "firefox |
> firefox-esr", users of unstable would get firefox installed, while users
> of testing or stable would still get firefox-esr. Assuming those users
> continue running unstable, they'll get timely updates for the firefox
> package, so no concern about becoming unsupported.
>
> This would also make it easier for users like me who have metapackages
> depending on both gnome and "firefox | iceweasel" (to support both
> unstable and stable). With those dependencies, I end up with both
> firefox and firefox-esr installed; with gnome-core's dependencies
> swapped around, I'd end up with only firefox installed.

I think a better approach would be to depend on gnome-www-browser instead,
or at least include it as an alternative to a default browser.

The point is, I prefer chromium rather than firefox, and I guess other
people do also, but installing gnome-core forces me to keep both browsers
installed. Given that neither is part of the gnome project and both provide
gnome-www-browser (as does epiphany-browser[1]), I think that gnome-core
should at least let the user decide.

I know there's the posibility to uninstall gnome-core and keep all its
dependencies as manual selections, but in the long (medium?) run that would
mean that the system will be out of sync with gnome-core, as there could be
additions/removals to the package list that are considered to represent
"core gnome".

BTW, this bug is related/duplicates #662150.


[1] From a gnome point of view, I think the natural setting should be
"epiphany-browser | gnome-www-browser", but I believe eppiphany fell off
that list because of security issues a while ago. Don't know if that
problem is still there.


-- 
Antonio Trueba
atgayol at gmail.com
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