Installing a compiler by default

[Peter Whittaker]

This has been a long thread, and my email could be just as long, so I
will bullet briefly instead of discoursing discursively....

1. For some of us, disk isn't cheap (small machines, bad partitioning
decisions, dual boot, combination of all three, whatever). Saying "it
doesn't take up that much space" is bad logic, and this isn't the only
package that "says" that. How long before I run out of / because of poor
packaging rationalizations?

2. If developers need a compiler, then learning how to get it for the
platform seems a small price to pay and is probably a good thing. Climb
that learning curve, then compile!

3. If non-developers need to link modules into the kernel, perhaps
another tool is needed, a lighter-weight driver linker. I confess my
ignorance in this area, perhaps gcc is the lightest-weight alternative;
but it still isn't needed by everyone, perhaps not even by a significant
minority. But perhaps my ignorance is typical - how many of us, the
broader Ubuntu community, even know or ever will know what it means to
compile/link drivers into the kernel? or even what a kernel is?

4. Given other threads (reclaiming lost disk space, etc.), perhaps what
are needed are ubuntu alternatives for developers, gamers, etc., similar
to edubuntu, kubuntu, etc.: The default for the vast majority of us is
and will be ubuntu (desktop with office apps, entertainment
capabilities, email, browser). Developers could kick tires with
devbuntu, which would come with all the toys (why do I even have gdb on
my system?). Those with bleeding edge hardware or with a need to suck
every bit of performance they can from the system could opt for
genbuntoo, which would be similarly equipped.

I confess, when I first installed Ubuntu I was surprised to learn there
was no compiler. But I got over that: I lived on Windows without one for
years, and I know how to use apt-get. I still don't have one (/ is
tight), but I know where to get it if I need it. And besides, if I
really feel like coding, awk, perl, and python are there (whether I need
them or not! :->).

pww


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