Merging Arch Linux ARM with mainstream Arch Linux

hashken · 2014-10-14 14:33:34

I just came across a thread [1] in the forums that had discussed unifying support for other architectures into mainstream ArchLinux. Although the thread was a couple of years old, there seemed to be considerable interest even then to bring in ARM support into the mainstream ArchLinux. Is there any possiblity of it happening now?

[1] https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=157314

Awebb · 2014-10-14 14:37:12

Allan wrote:

And here in lies the issue... Do we join and bring in the packages for ARMv5, ARMv6 or ARMv7? Or the lot? We do not have packages optimized for (e.g) Core-i7 in the repos. Do we wait for ARMv8, which might be around for a while before v9 is thought about and also might be more appropriate for desktops - or at least low power servers?
And anyway, the ARM port is doing very well without being official Arch. The need to merge under a single umbrella is limited.

hashken · 2014-10-14 14:47:47

Supporting v5, v6, v7 separately or ARM as a whole would need to be discussed. But, I don't think that is a major reason for not merging.

Also, merging the projects would benefit everyone as a whole, as quality talent from both projects can now work on a unified project and reduce duplication of efforts.

nomorewindows · 2014-10-14 14:54:20

Different architecture, different mirror, not that it makes that much difference. The packages are just rebuild from the same projects.

hashken · 2014-10-14 16:10:01

Some immediate benefits I can think of because of the merger (mainly for the Arch Linux ARM project):

* Better support through Arch Linux forums
* ARM users will now get more support for AUR packages. If I'm not wrong, getting AUR packages to work in Arch Linux ARM is difficult sometimes.

ewaller · 2014-10-14 16:28:10

I own a Rasberry-pi running ArchArm. Of course, I run Arch on all of my Intel boxen.

As a moderator, one of my charters is to keep the Arch Linux forums focused on and relevant to Arch Linux. We don't really care if people use other distributions; everyone is welcome on these forums. But... We don't provide support for non-Arch distributions (including all spin-offs) because the information that is applicable to other distributions might not be applicable to or even be correct on a pure Intel Arch installation. We do not allow such confusion and/or ambiguity to creep in.

Sadly, as much as a love Arch Arm on Ras-pi, the support issues surrounding it really do not belong here.

Awebb · 2014-10-14 16:56:51

I think this is not the right place to discuss this, because it's not a matter of what bbs.archlinux.org users want, but rather what the project leads of both projects have in mind. It is nice that you want to kindle the discussion, but this discussion has been on and off since the beginning of the archlinuxarm project, so I don't think more talk is really the right way. What you should do, is get close to the ARM team and see what needs to be done to make such a transition. Come up with a plan, think it through, get some solid thoughts rolling.

nomorewindows wrote:

Different architecture, different mirror, not that it makes that much difference. The packages are just rebuild from the same projects.

The ARM images are ready to use images that are being written to memory devices. There is no installation. ARM Arch is very popular among, say, RasPi users, because it is as easy to handle as it is to extract the image to the SD Card. I don't want to sound like the elitist arrogant snob I am, but as it is right now, I am glad that there are two separate message boards.

Trilby · 2014-10-14 17:01:55

note, this post is just from user Trilby, not moderator Trilby

hashken wrote:

merging the projects would benefit everyone as a whole, as quality talent from both projects can now work on a unified project and reduce duplication of efforts.

This sounds nice - but on what basis is this actually true? If the criteria of unifying talent were sufficient to justify merging, then we should not only merge archlinux and archlinuxarm, but also ubuntu, mint, fedora, suse, and ever other distro out there. All the talent would be unified.

But all that talent would then be useless, as one who is familiar with fedora may not be helpful to someone using archlinux. Archlinuxarm is sufficiently different that one cannot assume that familiarity or proficiency in one will translate to the other.

There is a recurring case to have such a merger - and it may be well worth discussion. But what the discussion needs is a clear assessment of pros and cons. And a statement that merging unifies talents simply does not hold water as it simultaneously diffuses expertise.

nomorewindows · 2014-10-14 17:05:12

Trilby wrote:

note, this post is just from user Trilby, not moderator Trilby
hashken wrote:
merging the projects would benefit everyone as a whole, as quality talent from both projects can now work on a unified project and reduce duplication of efforts.
This sounds nice - but on what basis is this actually true? If the criteria of unifying talent were sufficient to justify merging, then we should not only merge archlinux and archlinuxarm, but also ubuntu, mint, fedora, suse, and ever other distro out there. All the talent would be unified.
But all that talent would then be useless, as one who is familiar with fedora may not be helpful to someone using archlinux. Archlinuxarm is sufficiently different that one cannot assume that familiarity or proficiency in one will translate to the other.
There is a recurring case to have such a merger - and it may be well worth discussion. But what the discussion needs is a clear assessment of pros and cons. And a statement that merging unifies talents simply does not hold water as it simultaneously diffuses expertise.

Didn't Arch have an April Fool's joke one year about rebranding all the distros into one?

ewaller · 2014-10-14 17:08:47

nomorewindows wrote:

Didn't Arch have an April Fool's joke one year about rebranding all the distros into one?

I liked the idea of an Arch Gentoo Hybrid. I really did.

Arch Linux

#1 2014-10-14 14:33:34

Merging Arch Linux ARM with mainstream Arch Linux

#2 2014-10-14 14:37:12

Re: Merging Arch Linux ARM with mainstream Arch Linux

#3 2014-10-14 14:47:47

Re: Merging Arch Linux ARM with mainstream Arch Linux

#4 2014-10-14 14:54:20

Re: Merging Arch Linux ARM with mainstream Arch Linux

#5 2014-10-14 16:10:01

Re: Merging Arch Linux ARM with mainstream Arch Linux

#6 2014-10-14 16:28:10

Re: Merging Arch Linux ARM with mainstream Arch Linux

#7 2014-10-14 16:56:51

Re: Merging Arch Linux ARM with mainstream Arch Linux

#8 2014-10-14 17:01:55

Re: Merging Arch Linux ARM with mainstream Arch Linux

#9 2014-10-14 17:05:12

Re: Merging Arch Linux ARM with mainstream Arch Linux

#10 2014-10-14 17:08:47

Re: Merging Arch Linux ARM with mainstream Arch Linux

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