[Pkg-tcltk-devel] Debian Tcl/Tk packages: get rid of alternatives

[Sergei Golovan]

Hi!

I'd like to discuss a thought of getting rid of /usr/bin/tclsh and
/usr/bin/wish alternatives in Debian Tcl/Tk packages. This means that
symlinks /usr/bin/tclsh and /usr/bin/wish will be in tcl and tk
packages only, and will point to the default tclsh8.* and wish8.*
unconditionally. The same approach is currently using in Python
packaging.

There's pro and contra in this:

Pro: Makes tclsh and wish more predictable. There won't be a case when
someone points a tclsh alternative to tclsh8.3 and gets broken
Tcl-based software on upgrade.

Contra: Changing the default Tcl/Tk version will require extra
transitions (though I'm not sure it's a bad thing).

This change will require changes in Debian Tcl/Tk policy concerning
package dependencies. If a package depends on tcl8.5 it must use
/usr/bin/tclsh8.5 as an interpreter, etc.

What do you think? Is it worth doing?

Cheers!
--
Sergei Golovan