Which mirror keeps me current?
 

I installed Slackware 12.0 and tried to use slackpkg. The /etc/slackpkg/mirrors file contained mirrors for Slackware 11, Current, and 10. Initially I uncommented a Current mirror and used "slackpkg update" for some time. It always said that the Changelog is not modified. Finally I got worried that there are no updates and uncommented a Slackware 11 mirror, but changed 11.0 to 12.0.

This mirror returned the current Changelog.

So, was I unlucky with the Current mirror or is that intended? Can I get both security updates and new software from one mirror?

There has not been any (public) activity in Slackware -current since the release of 12.0, so you should have your package manager pointed to a Slackware 12.0 mirror to get security updates.

Once Slackware -current gets moving again, pointing the package manager to it will give you security updates plus software updates, but tracking -current just for the sake of grabbing updated software is probably not the best idea; it is a development version, and is prone to breaking and requiring tweaking.

Of course, some people would suggest not using an automated package manager in the first place, much less on -current.

There is a difference between Slackware "-current" and any stable Slackware release.

For a stable release, you will find that patches are released on a regular basis which fix bugs that are considered critical enough to warrant updating one or more packages. This will keep your installment of the Slackware release safe and up to date with respect to security, but the patches will not add new functionality.

For new functionality you will have to wait for the next stable release (Slackware 12.0 being the most recent stable release).

Now, slackware-current is what the package tree is called when development of a new release starts.

Slackware-current is not to be considered the most "current" release of Slackware as people often think. It is a development tree which means that if you want to use it as your installment of Slackware, you are in fact beta-testing the next release. If you are not comfortable with compiling software, or troubleshooting broken installations, then slackware-current is not for you. The -current tree can be working fine (in fact it usually is very stable) but there will be no guarantees as to its usefulness. It can happen that someday when you update to the latest daily build, your system will no longer boot, or programs no longer function. When that happens, we ask you to report it as a bug to Slackware (or on the ##slackware IRC channel on Freenode).

On top of that, you are advised to read the ChangeLog.txt and scan for crucial changes in the package tree which would require you to do some manual adjustment of config files.
Therefore, it is not advisable to use an automated package management system like slackpkg or slapt-get, or swaret, if you are using slackware-current. You will have to use your eyes and brain if you upgrade packages.

I hope I spread enough "FUD" to make you (and other who read this post) think carefully before using an automated upgrade program in combination with Slackware-current...

Eric

Thank you. For years I've been confused between the two. Your post clarified all that. Also, I was reading a tutorial on Slackware from the "Perfect Desktop" series. There I found out what exactly the 'patches' folder does in the slackware12 folder. Using the Security Advisories page and the 'patches' folder, now I can keep my Slackware 12 up to date.

Well, unfortunately there are 2 things working against you in this endeavor:

1. The FUD that says "Slackware is too hard ..."

2. The people who believe that FUD and choose to "simplify" Slackware by using these tools.

I understand why people do it, but it's really not helping anyone in the long run. The ironic thing about it is that it's the Slackware newbies that get hurt the most by these tools. In fact, these tools can be quite useful if you have the experience to understand their limitations. Unfortunately, they provide ample rope to hang oneself if you don't have the required level of clue.

Steve

I usually use the usc mirrors, they stay up to date and pretty fast:

ftp://mirrors.usc.edu/pub/linux/dist...lackware-12.0/
or
ftp://mirrors.usc.edu/pub/linux/dist...kware-current/

then again it's always helpful to check the ChangeLog.txt file on the official mirror to see if there are any updates

.../slackware/slackware-XX.X/ChangeLog.txt