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AppImage: Linux apps that run anywhere

appimage.org

31–40 of 241 posts

Re: AppImage: Linux apps that run anywhere

#31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As near as I can tell, yes.

Application binaries must statically link libc and ssl when making programs for packging into appimage?

Maybe not, but Since "Every AppImage contains an app and all the files the app needs to run." Even if you were dynamically linking, you'd be linking against a lib contained in the AppImage. So, each app would still have its own glibc that would have to be updated.

Re: AppImage: Linux apps that run anywhere

#32
I am profoundly uninterested in a third-party package manager that does not provide any sandboxing features. xdg-app has them, but AppImage does not mention sandboxing on its web site or in its README.

Re: AppImage: Linux apps that run anywhere

#33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As near as I can tell, yes.

Application binaries must statically link libc and ssl when making programs for packging into appimage?

I haven't dug far enough into this specific project to know if it's static or dynamic linking, but that just doesn't matter.

Each app has it's own copy of libssl etc embedded into the prepackaged "binary" which is executed.. That's enough to know it's going to lead to all sorts of suffering when you actually try and rid yourself of $CVE of the month.

Re: AppImage: Linux apps that run anywhere

#34

I believe the core problem here (that led to containerization, application images and alike) is that correct packaging for most distros is hard. There are tools like fpm or even checkinstall that can build simple good-enough-but-not-really packages, but I think maintaining a "proper" Debian packaging requires some pretty arcane knowledge that's spread around various pieces of documentation (and maybe I'm just stupid,…

Completely agree with you in regards to Debian packaging. I googled around and found at least 5 different official guides (on the debian wiki) all using slightly different approaches. I tried 3 of them before giving up, as none of them seemed to work.

Re: AppImage: Linux apps that run anywhere

#35
post #19
post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because users and developers both want to be able to download and use new versions of software at a release cadence that makes sense for that application. The "every application gets the same release cadence no matter what" approach only appeals to people making distros.

Nothing in using the distro's packaging formats forces you to release only at the same time as the distro.

While of course you are technically correct, think about it from the grandma perspective. Grandma uses $app that requires wine, but grandson set her up on Debian stable. She can't run the latest wine because it isn't stable, and it's needed for $app, without updating the system to unstable.

I could be erroneously attributing the intended use case, but I believe this isn't designed for people who know what they're doing; it's for people who don't know, like grandma.

Re: AppImage: Linux apps that run anywhere

#36
post #7
post #3

As a user, I want to download an application from the original author, and run it on my Linux desktop system just like I would do with a Windows or Mac application. Please pull over. I want off this ride. Why the hell are we regressing to shipping around hackily built binaries?

Because users and developers both want to be able to download and use new versions of software at a release cadence that makes sense for that application. The "every application gets the same release cadence no matter what" approach only appeals to people making distros.

That's one use case. Here's another: I am a user who wants stable secure software above all else. When faced with the need for a version of software that is not yet provided by the distribution, I download, verify, build, and test the software from source.

The "every application gets the same release cadence no matter what" approach appeals to me, and I'm a normal user.

Re: AppImage: Linux apps that run anywhere

#39
post #5

Do you guys remember those "Portable" Windows executables?

Yup and they were fantastic! Mac OS X apps can work in much the same way. It's nice being able to download something and know it'll "just work".

Obviously it's terrible for getting security patches. Not entirely sure what to do about that. It would be nice to make package management more consistent across distros but I digress.

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