[pacman-dev] [PATCH] Revise pacman(8)
Jason St. John
jstjohn at purdue.edu
Wed May 29 08:03:29 EDT 2013
From: "Jason St. John" <jstjohn at purdue.edu>
Resolve several grammatical errors and minor formatting consistency issues
in pacman(8). Generalize the "FTP servers" and package file extension
information.
Signed-off-by: Jason St. John <jstjohn at purdue.edu>
---
This is a resubmission based on Dave's feedback.
doc/pacman.8.txt | 146 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++---------------------------
1 file changed, 74 insertions(+), 72 deletions(-)
diff --git a/doc/pacman.8.txt b/doc/pacman.8.txt
index 36b5617..1cc1eaa 100644
--- a/doc/pacman.8.txt
+++ b/doc/pacman.8.txt
@@ -17,17 +17,17 @@ Description
-----------
Pacman is a package management utility that tracks installed packages on a Linux
system. It features dependency support, package groups, install and uninstall
-hooks, and the ability to sync your local machine with a remote ftp server to
+hooks, and the ability to sync your local machine with a remote repository to
automatically upgrade packages. Pacman packages are a zipped tar format.
-Since version 3.0.0, pacman has been the frontend to linkman:libalpm[3], the
+Since version 3.0.0, pacman has been the front-end to linkman:libalpm[3], the
``Arch Linux Package Management'' library. This library allows alternative
-front ends to be written (for instance, a GUI front end).
+front-ends to be written (for instance, a GUI front-end).
Invoking pacman involves specifying an operation with any potential options and
-targets to operate on. A 'target' is usually a package name, filename, URL, or
+targets to operate on. A 'target' is usually a package name, file name, URL, or
a search string. Targets can be provided as command line arguments.
-Additionally, if stdin is not from a terminal and a single dash (-) is passed
+Additionally, if stdin is not from a terminal and a single hyphen (-) is passed
as an argument, targets will be read from stdin.
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ Operations
packages and their files, as well as meta-information about individual
packages (dependencies, conflicts, install date, build date, size). This
can be run against the local package database or can be used on
- individual '.tar.gz' packages. In the first case, if no package names
+ individual package files. In the first case, if no package names
are provided in the command line, all installed packages will be
queried. Additionally, various filters can be applied on the package
list. See <<QO,Query Options>> below.
@@ -58,19 +58,19 @@ Operations
See <<RO,Remove Options>> below.
*-S, \--sync*::
- Synchronize packages. Packages are installed directly from the ftp
- servers, including all dependencies required to run the packages. For
+ Synchronize packages. Packages are installed directly from the remote
+ repositories, including all dependencies required to run the packages. For
example, `pacman -S qt` will download and install qt and all the
- packages it depends on. If a package name exists in more than one repo, the
- repo can be explicitly specified to clarify the package to install:
- `pacman -S testing/qt`. You can also specify version requirements:
- `pacman -S "bash>=3.2"`. (Quotes are needed, otherwise your shell
- interprets ">" as redirection to file.)
+ packages it depends on. If a package name exists in more than one
+ repository, the repository can be explicitly specified to clarify the
+ package to install: `pacman -S testing/qt`. You can also specify version
+ requirements: `pacman -S "bash>=3.2"`. Quotes are needed, otherwise the
+ shell interprets ">" as redirection to a file.
+
In addition to packages, groups can be specified as well. For example, if
gnome is a defined package group, then `pacman -S gnome` will provide a
prompt allowing you to select which packages to install from a numbered list.
-The package selection is specified using a space and/or comma separated list of
+The package selection is specified using a space- and/or comma-separated list of
package numbers. Sequential packages may be selected by specifying the first
and last package numbers separated by a hyphen (`-`). Excluding packages is
achieved by prefixing a number or range of numbers with a caret (`^`).
@@ -81,7 +81,7 @@ provide the same functionality as foo will be searched for. If any package is
found, it will be installed. A selection prompt is provided if multiple packages
providing foo are found.
+
-You can also use `pacman -Su` to upgrade all packages that are out of date. See
+You can also use `pacman -Su` to upgrade all packages that are out-of-date. See
<<SO,Sync Options>> below. When upgrading, pacman performs version comparison
to determine which packages need upgrading. This behavior operates as follows:
@@ -91,7 +91,7 @@ to determine which packages need upgrading. This behavior operates as follows:
1 < 1.0 < 1.1 < 1.1.1 < 1.2 < 2.0 < 3.0.0
+
Additionally, version strings can have an 'epoch' value defined that will
-overrule any version comparison (unless the epoch values are equal). This is
+overrule any version comparison, unless the epoch values are equal. This is
specified in an `epoch:version-rel` format. For example, `2:1.0-1` is always
greater than `1:3.6-1`.
@@ -104,16 +104,16 @@ greater than `1:3.6-1`.
*-U, \--upgrade*::
Upgrade or add package(s) to the system and install the required
- dependencies from sync repos. Either a URL or file path can be
+ dependencies from sync repositories. Either a URL or file path can be
specified. This is a ``remove-then-add'' process. See <<UO,Upgrade
Options>> below; also see <<HCF,Handling Config Files>> for an explanation
- on how pacman takes care of config files.
+ on how pacman takes care of configuration files.
*-V, \--version*::
Display version and exit.
*-h, \--help*::
- Display syntax for the given operation. If no operation was supplied
+ Display syntax for the given operation. If no operation was supplied,
then the general syntax is shown.
@@ -121,16 +121,17 @@ Options
-------
*-b, \--dbpath* <path>::
Specify an alternative database location (a typical default is
- +{localstatedir}/lib/pacman+). This should not be used unless you know what you are
- doing. *NOTE*: if specified, this is an absolute path and the root path is
+ +{localstatedir}/lib/pacman+). This should not be used unless you know what
+ you are doing.
+ *NOTE*: if specified, this is an absolute path, and the root path is
not automatically prepended.
*-r, \--root* <path>::
Specify an alternative installation root (default is `/`). This should
not be used as a way to install software into `/usr/local` instead of
`/usr`. This option is used if you want to install a package on a
- temporary mounted partition that is "owned" by another system.
- *NOTE*: if database path or logfile are not specified on either the
+ temporarily mounted partition that is "owned" by another system.
+ *NOTE*: If database path or log file are not specified on either the
command line or in linkman:pacman.conf[5], their default location will
be inside this root path.
@@ -142,14 +143,15 @@ Options
*\--cachedir* <dir>::
Specify an alternative package cache location (a typical default is
- +{localstatedir}/cache/pacman/pkg+). Multiple cache directories can be specified,
- and they are tried in the order they are passed to pacman. *NOTE*: this
- is an absolute path, the root path is not automatically prepended.
+ +{localstatedir}/cache/pacman/pkg+). Multiple cache directories can be
+ specified, and they are tried in the order they are passed to pacman.
+ *NOTE*: This is an absolute path, and the root path is not automatically
+ prepended.
*\--color* <when>::
- Specify when to enable coloring, can be 'always', 'never' or 'auto'. Always
- forces colours on, never forces colours off, and auto only automatically enables
- colours when outputting onto a tty.
+ Specify when to enable coloring. Valid options are 'always', 'never', or
+ 'auto'. 'always' forces colors on; 'never' forces colors off; and 'auto' only
+ automatically enables colors when outputting onto a tty.
*\--config* <file>::
Specify an alternate configuration file.
@@ -163,8 +165,8 @@ Options
typical default is +{sysconfdir}/pacman.d/gnupg+). This directory should contain
two files: `pubring.gpg` and `trustdb.gpg`. `pubring.gpg` holds the public keys
of all packagers. `trustdb.gpg` contains a so-called trust database, which
- specifies that the keys are authentic and trusted. *NOTE*: this is an absolute
- path, the root path is not automatically prepended.
+ specifies that the keys are authentic and trusted. *NOTE*: This is an absolute
+ path, and the root path is not automatically prepended.
*\--logfile* <file>::
Specify an alternate log file. This is an absolute path, regardless of
@@ -183,7 +185,7 @@ Transaction Options (apply to '-S', '-R' and '-U')
system. Specify this option twice to skip all dependency checks.
*\--dbonly*::
- Adds/Removes the database entry only, leaves all files in place.
+ Adds/removes the database entry only, leaving all files in place.
*\--noprogressbar*::
Do not show a progress bar when downloading files. This can be useful
@@ -197,12 +199,12 @@ Transaction Options (apply to '-S', '-R' and '-U')
Only print the targets instead of performing the actual operation (sync,
remove or upgrade). Use '\--print-format' to specify how targets are
displayed. The default format string is "%l", which displays URLs with
- '-S', filenames with '-U' and pkgname-pkgver with '-R'.
+ '-S', file names with '-U', and pkgname-pkgver with '-R'.
*\--print-format* <format>::
Specify a printf-like format to control the output of the '\--print'
operation. The possible attributes are: %n for pkgname, %v for pkgver,
- %l for location, %r for repo and %s for size.
+ %l for location, %r for repo, and %s for size.
Upgrade Options (apply to '-S' and '-U')[[UO]]
--------------------------------------------
@@ -217,7 +219,7 @@ Upgrade Options (apply to '-S' and '-U')[[UO]]
*\--asdeps*::
Install packages non-explicitly; in other words, fake their install reason
to be installed as a dependency. This is useful for makepkg and other
- build from source tools that need to install dependencies before building
+ build-from-source tools that need to install dependencies before building
the package.
*\--asexplicit*::
@@ -232,12 +234,12 @@ Upgrade Options (apply to '-S' and '-U')[[UO]]
with a comma.
*\--ignoregroup* <group>::
- Directs pacman to ignore upgrades of all packages in 'group' even if
+ Directs pacman to ignore upgrades of all packages in 'group', even if
there is one available. Multiple groups can be specified by
separating them with a comma.
*\--needed*::
- Do not reinstall the targets that are already up to date.
+ Do not reinstall the targets that are already up-to-date.
Query Options[[QO]]
@@ -269,8 +271,8 @@ Query Options[[QO]]
*-k \--check*::
Check that all files owned by the given package(s) are present on the
system. If packages are not specified or filter flags are not provided,
- check all installed packages. Specifying this option twice will perform
- more detailed file checking (including permissions, file sizes and
+ check all installed packages. Specifying this option twice will perform
+ more detailed file checking (including permissions, file sizes, and
modification times) for packages that contain the needed mtree file.
*-l, \--list*::
@@ -279,16 +281,16 @@ Query Options[[QO]]
*-m, \--foreign*::
Restrict or filter output to packages that were not found in the sync
- database(s). Typically these are packages that were downloaded manually
+ database(s). Typically these are packages that were downloaded manually
and installed with '\--upgrade'.
*-n, \--native*::
Restrict or filter output to packages that are found in the sync
- database(s). This is the inverse filter of '\--foreign'.
+ database(s). This is the inverse filter of '\--foreign'.
*-o, \--owns* <file>::
Search for packages that own the specified file(s). The path can be
- relative or absolute and one or more files can be specified.
+ relative or absolute, and one or more files can be specified.
*-p, \--file*::
Signifies that the package supplied on the command line is a file and
@@ -296,8 +298,8 @@ Query Options[[QO]]
This is useful in combination with '\--info' and '\--list'.
*-q, \--quiet*::
- Show less information for certain query operations. (This is useful when
- pacman's output is processed in a script.) Search will only show package
+ Show less information for certain query operations. This is useful when
+ pacman's output is processed in a script. Search will only show package
names and not version, group, and description information; owns will
only show package names instead of "file is owned by pkg" messages; group
will only show package names and omit group names; list will only show
@@ -315,9 +317,9 @@ Query Options[[QO]]
installed package.
*-u, \--upgrades*::
- Restrict or filter output to packages that are out of date on the local
- system. (Only package versions are used to find outdated packages,
- replacements are not checked here.) This option works best if the sync
+ Restrict or filter output to packages that are out-of-date on the local
+ system. Only package versions are used to find outdated packages;
+ replacements are not checked here. This option works best if the sync
database is refreshed using '-Sy'.
@@ -325,19 +327,19 @@ Remove Options[[RO]]
--------------------
*-c, \--cascade*::
Remove all target packages, as well as all packages that depend on one
- or more target packages. This operation is recursive, and must be used
- with care since it can remove many potentially needed packages.
+ or more target packages. This operation is recursive and must be used
+ with care, since it can remove many potentially needed packages.
*-n, \--nosave*::
Instructs pacman to ignore file backup designations. Normally, when a
- file is removed from the system the database is checked to see if the
+ file is removed from the system, the database is checked to see if the
file should be renamed with a '.pacsave' extension.
*-s, \--recursive*::
Remove each target specified including all of their dependencies, provided
that (A) they are not required by other packages; and (B) they were not
explicitly installed by the user. This operation is recursive and analogous
- to a backwards '\--sync' operation, and helps keep a clean system without
+ to a backwards '\--sync' operation, and it helps keep a clean system without
orphans. If you want to omit condition (B), pass this option twice.
*-u, \--unneeded*::
@@ -352,7 +354,7 @@ Sync Options[[SO]]
Remove packages that are no longer installed from the cache as well as
currently unused sync databases to free up disk space. When pacman
downloads packages, it saves them in a cache directory. In addition,
- databases are saved for every sync DB you download from, and are not
+ databases are saved for every sync DB you download from and are not
deleted even if they are removed from the configuration file
linkman:pacman.conf[5]. Use one '\--clean' switch to only remove
packages that are no longer installed; use two to remove all files
@@ -377,9 +379,9 @@ linkman:pacman.conf[5].
can be specified on the command line.
*-q, \--quiet*::
- Show less information for certain sync operations. (This is useful when
- pacman's output is processed in a script.) Search will only show package
- names and not repo, version, group, and description information; list
+ Show less information for certain sync operations. This is useful when
+ pacman's output is processed in a script. Search will only show package
+ names and not repository, version, group, and description information; list
will only show package names and omit databases and versions; group will
only show package names and omit group names.
@@ -390,16 +392,16 @@ linkman:pacman.conf[5].
be returned.
*-u, \--sysupgrade*::
- Upgrades all packages that are out of date. Each currently-installed
+ Upgrades all packages that are out-of-date. Each currently-installed
package will be examined and upgraded if a newer package exists. A
- report of all packages to upgrade will be presented and the operation
+ report of all packages to upgrade will be presented, and the operation
will not proceed without user confirmation. Dependencies are
automatically resolved at this level and will be installed/upgraded if
necessary.
+
-Pass this option twice to enable package downgrade; in this case pacman will
-select sync packages whose version does not match with the local version. This
-can be useful when the user switches from a testing repo to a stable one.
+Pass this option twice to enable package downgrades; in this case, pacman will
+select sync packages whose versions do not match with the local versions. This
+can be useful when the user switches from a testing repository to a stable one.
+
Additional targets can also be specified manually, so that '-Su foo' will do a
system upgrade and install/upgrade the foo package in the same operation.
@@ -411,17 +413,17 @@ system upgrade and install/upgrade the foo package in the same operation.
Download a fresh copy of the master package list from the server(s)
defined in linkman:pacman.conf[5]. This should typically be used each time
you use '\--sysupgrade' or '-u'. Passing two '\--refresh' or '-y' flags
- will force a refresh of all package lists even if they appear to be up
- to date.
+ will force a refresh of all package lists, even if they appear to be up-
+ to-date.
Handling Config Files[[HCF]]
----------------------------
-Pacman uses the same logic as rpm to determine action against files that are
-designated to be backed up. During an upgrade, 3 md5 hashes are used for each
-backup file to determine the required action: one for the original file
-installed, one for the new file that's about to be installed, and one for the
-actual file existing on the filesystem. After comparing these 3 hashes, the
+Pacman uses the same logic as 'rpm' to determine action against files that are
+designated to be backed up. During an upgrade, three MD5 hashes are used for
+each backup file to determine the required action: one for the original file
+installed, one for the new file that is about to be installed, and one for the
+actual file existing on the file system. After comparing these three hashes, the
follow scenarios can result:
original=X, current=X, new=X::
@@ -429,13 +431,13 @@ original=X, current=X, new=X::
new file.
original=X, current=X, new=Y::
- The current file is the same as the original but the new one differs.
+ The current file is the same as the original, but the new one differs.
Since the user did not ever modify the file, and the new one may contain
- improvements or bugfixes, install the new file.
+ improvements or bug fixes, install the new file.
original=X, current=Y, new=X::
Both package versions contain the exact same file, but the one on the
- filesystem has been modified. Leave the current file in place.
+ file system has been modified. Leave the current file in place.
original=X, current=Y, new=Y::
The new file is identical to the current file. Install the new file.
@@ -446,8 +448,8 @@ original=X, current=Y, new=Z::
necessary changes into the original file.
original=NULL, current=Y, new=Z::
- Package was not previously installed and the file already exists on the
- filesystem. Save the current file with a '.pacorig' extension, install the
+ The package was not previously installed, and the file already exists on the
+ file system. Save the current file with a '.pacorig' extension, install the
new file, and warn the user.
--
1.8.3
More information about the pacman-dev
mailing list