Re: [Tails-dev] installing a package with double click

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Author: sajolida
Date:  
To: The Tails public development discussion list
Subject: Re: [Tails-dev] installing a package with double click
emma peel:
> intrigeri:
>> emma peel:
>>> Would it be possible to install, for example, gdebi, so users can
>
>>> - double-click on a .deb file on Nautilus
>>> - get asked the admin password
>>> - install the debian package
>
>> The major problem I have with this (manual) approach is: users won't
>> get any kind of upgrade for the installed software unless they
>> consciously and manually go somewhere to check for upgrades. Bug-free,
>> fully translated software that never needs to be upgraded is
>> pretty rare.
>
> The package will also add a repo where said package is also located and add it to additional-software.conf, so it should be updated automatically when there is a new version on the repo, right?
>
>> The approach we support currently is adding new APT sources in
>> a persistent manner (perhaps in the future we'll support Flatpak
>> remotes similarly but we're not there yet). I don't know how well this
>> support works in practice (due to lack of feedback). But setting up and
>> maintaining an APT repo may not be that much less work than having the
>> software in Debian proper. YMMV :)
>
> The idea is to have a debian package that adds a Debian repository, apart of a graphic interface to install and enable the other apps.
>
> Devs wanted to make the bootstrap process easier for non-technical users, so that is why the gdebi idea.
>
> But sajolida's suggestion is OK, users can install gdebi through synaptic and not even persist it, and then the rest of the packages can be installed from the repo.
>
> The main package will also be on this repo, so it will be easily updated.


I got it now!

So the problem here is: how do you switch from running vanilla Tails to
running a different Tails blend/derivative (as described a bit in [1])?

[1]: https://tails.boum.org/contribute/derivatives/

That's an interesting problem!

And their approach sounds good: using a configuration package from a
custom Debian repo. I also wondered if it would be possible (and maybe
easier for the user) to run some executable that adds the custom repo.
But I'm not sure how to create executable that you can double-click on
or open with "Open With Other Application"...

--
sajolida