[SDL] Installation of binary apps on linux

[Gerry JJ]

On Tue, 05 Dec 2006 00:54:49 +0100, Simon Roby <simon.roby at gmail.com>  
wrote:
> Why have an installation procedure *at all* anyway?? What's wrong with
> suppling a plain directory in a tarball/zip/whatever and run it
> entirely from that directory?

User-friendliness.  A tarball needs to be manually extracted, and doesn't
install any links, icons or menu entries.  In Gnome, double-clicking a
wrapper script (usually needed to handle included libraries and such)
doesn't just run the file even if it has the execute bit set, it asks if
you want to execute or view the file.  Also, if you want to install a
game system-wide as opposed to just in your home, it's more complex if
you've only got a tarball.  Tech-savvy people will of course be able to
do this easily, but you've got people like my mom and sister using Linux
these days.  These people also play games.

> Or do we need to copy all Windows concepts, mechanically and without
> reasoning? This is a serious question.

No, we should of course not copy anything without any reasoning.  I just
want the process of installing games to be easy and intuitive for
everyone.  I'm all ears if you've got better suggestions.

I'm not saying tarballs is a bad idea, by the way.  Like zips in Windows,
some games might be better distributed that way than with an installer.

~ Gerry