[arch-general] `base` group replaced by mandatory `base` package - manual intervention required

[Paul Stoetzer]

The base-extras group really sounds like a great solution. Please
consider this approach!

Obviously, you don't need to re-install Arch too often, but I like to
experiment with various configurations on various machines and I have
gotten used to what is in that base group.

Thanks!

Paul Stoetzer

On Tue, Oct 8, 2019 at 4:34 PM Eli Schwartz via arch-general
<arch-general at archlinux.org> wrote:
>
> On 10/7/19 12:02 AM, Marc Ranolfi via arch-general wrote:
> >> The `base` group has been replaced by a metapackage of the same name, we
> > advise users to install this package (`pacman -Syu base`), as it is
> > effectively mandatory from now on.
> >
> > Please, was this discussed somewhere? I want to know the details, and
> > gather what is needed to update the 'Installation guide' article in the
> > wiki. In particular, I want to understand why essential packages for new
> > installations, such as the kernel and a text editor, are not included
> > (actually I see the kernel is an optional dependency).
>
> Really, I wish we would do as I'd wanted and transfer the "essential
> packages" which aren't actually essential and were thus not included in
> base.. to a new *group* called "base-extras", which would reflect its
> status as being mere recommendations, while providing a convenient way
> to choose to interactively install them, and allowing the Installation
> Guide to transition from:
>
> pacstrap /mnt base
>
> to
>
> pacstrap /mnt base base-extras
>
> instead of becoming "and also decide whether you want the kernel, and
> also probably linux-firmware (but check whether your hardware needs
> firmware first), and oh, if you want a text editor, go install one of
> those too I guess, and in case you feel super surprised later when info
> and man don't work, you might want to install texinfo and man-db (and
> man-pages if you also want manpages) and a dozen other things that most
> people want even if they don't realize it".
>
> And now we need to cherry-pick tons of packages for the archiso, and we
> need to cherry-pick tons of packages into the installation guide, and
> there is nothing straightforward to tell anyone what to do today. So
> we've taken a step forward and a step back, and mostly weren't ready for
> it either way.
>
> --
> Eli Schwartz
> Bug Wrangler and Trusted User
>