'updatedb' : is it really mandatory, can I switch it off and how ?!

[JohnOfArc]

On Sat, 27 Nov 2004 11:45:55 -0500, Eric Dunbar wrote:

> Vince, slocate only runs once a day (which would explain why it seems to
> me that locate is usually out-of-date) so it wouldn't be causing disk
> chatter (a quick check in WebMin shows that slocate runs at 06:25...
> which I should probably change b/c, unless these jobs are run the next
> time Ubuntu is activated, they'll never run!)
> 
that's what "anacron" is for; from man anacron:

DESCRIPTION

       Anacron can be used to execute commands periodically, with a
       frequency specified in days.  Unlike cron(8), it does not assume
       that the machine is running contin- uously.   Hence,  it can be
       used on machines that aren't running 24 hours a day, to control
       daily, weekly, and monthly jobs that are usually controlled by 
       cron.