Re: Confusing Linux download page

Le 14/06/2010 05:15, Dave Page a écrit :
> On Mon, Jun 14, 2010 at 4:07 AM, Brendan Jurd <direvus(at)gmail(dot)com> wrote:
>> On 14 June 2010 00:07, Magnus Hagander <magnus(at)hagander(dot)net> wrote:
>>> On Sun, Jun 13, 2010 at 15:58, Dave Page <dpage(at)pgadmin(dot)org> wrote:
>>>> Only if you have such an app, and you have the required repository
>>>> configured. If not, then it's a lot more complex to explain.
>>>
>>> Well, you and me clearly disagree on which is the easiest for the end
>>> users, particularly in the long term. I'd be interested in hearing
>>> what others think as well on this, so please chime in if you have an
>>> opinion :-)
>>>
>>
>> I think that if you're running Linux, and you have somehow got
>> yourself into a situation where you don't have a functioning package
>> management tool (apt/portage/whatever), then figuring out how to
>> install postgres is going to be the least of your problems.
>
> It's not about not having a functioning package management tool - it's
> about there being a surprising number of users that don't care, can't
> be bothered to learn, or can't figure out what packages to download
> (remember, PostgreSQL consists of something like 5 - 10 different RPMs
> on Redhat, and it's not clear to a newbie what each is).

Nope, Brendan has a valid point. If they don't care on how to install
their PostgreSQL software, even on their linux desktop, how could they
install it on a server, make any upgrade, and so on? Moreover, if they
aren't able to read one simple webpage, they also won't read the fine
manual, meaning they will ask newbie questions, already anwsered in the
book. Not sure we really want to help that kind of people.

> Those people
> are the ones that take up webmaster time by asking for help,

This is something to work on. I understand it's not the webmaster work
to do that, but the actual answer (putting the one-click installer
first) is probably not the best one.

> so the
> strategy we settled on was to put the one-click packages at the top to
> make it easy for them, and the distro-specific instructions further
> down where they would be read by the people that could be bothered
> read and figure out what they need for their specific native distro
> packaging system.

It's perhaps easier for newbie. It's also confusing for others. I don't
really mind what we put on this webpage, but it's clear, at least to me
:), that the distro packages should be prefered any time, until the
people installing PostgreSQL knows exactly the differences between the
two. On Windows, the recommended installation, at least what I
recommend, should be with the one-click installer (which I personnally
find great, and so much better than the old community installer).

--
Guillaume
http://www.postgresql.fr
http://dalibo.com