On Thu, Apr 10, 2014 at 7:20 PM, Jeremy Audet wrote:

...

Doesn't every language with its own package manager have this problem? For example, Python. Is there a good solution? Users knowing about this issue and making their own decisions is the current solution on every distro I'm familiar with.

Aye. There are some upshots to allowing users to install software via either the system package manager or a language-specific one, instead of forcing them down a single path. For example, with ruby: tools such as bundler, rbenv and rvm provide users with some awesome capabilities, such as being able to install multiple versions of Ruby and multiple versions of gems, either system-wide, in a user's home directory or in a custom directory. That's very useful, and the user should have that option - but if the user wants a simpler, more straightforward option, they can use `gem` or `pacman`. (And the choice between gem and pacman has its own tradeoffs.)

Couldn't the same be said of Haskell packages? Using pacman to manage haskell packages provides some niceties, such as automatic updates (whenever -Syu is performed), whereas cabal-install provides its own niceties, such as access to numerous packages. So... is there anything wrong with letting the user choose the tool that suits their needs?

I guess I should modify my wording for Change 2 to be: "Change 2: Make a news item stating that either cabal-install or pacman packages are now the recommended way to install haskell packages. Not both in one system."