Automatic Source List Repair

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bigralphsmith 420
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Automatic Source List Repair

Post by bigralphsmith 420 »

56 yr old Linux Mint noob here. Been using it for about a week. This is my first post in these forums.
I consider myself fairly savvy in matters PC and my recent experiences in Mint have led me to wonder about something.
I've encountered the warning "Target Packages (X) is configured multiple times" after installing Wine.
This appears to be a rather common thing from my research and it has led me to a question:
Why is this warning (in fact all multiple config warnings) not resolved automatically by software?
If the system is smart enough to identify duplicates, shouldn't eliminating those duplicates automatically be a rather simple thing?
Surely some of the Mint gurus who are also coders could whip up something simple to eliminate the necessity for a "terminal dance" in resolving these warnings?
I would assume that such a script might even have to ask the user a few questions in the process but shouldn't that be a fairly simple thing to implement?
Just wondering and wondering if anyone else has been wondering.
Thanks.
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Re: Automatic Source List Repair

Post by Pjotr »

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bigralphsmith 420
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Re: Automatic Source List Repair

Post by bigralphsmith 420 »

Thanks for the suggestion.
Maybe someone will implement this kind of simple error correction in the future. I was just surprised that it hadn't already been addressed. It looks like all the command line stuff needed to get Mint properly configured and expand it's program set is the primary source of trepidation that keeps potential new users from taking the plunge. It seems to be why Linux isn't more widely adopted. Microsoft has intruded so far in to peoples activities on their computers that there's already a large base of people anxious to ditch Windows.
Between that and driver development, those are really the only things holding Linux back.
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Re: Automatic Source List Repair

Post by SMG »

bigralphsmith 420 wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 11:05 amI've encountered the warning "Target Packages (X) is configured multiple times" after installing Wine.
This appears to be a rather common thing from my research and it has led me to a question:
Why is this warning (in fact all multiple config warnings) not resolved automatically by software?
If the system is smart enough to identify duplicates, shouldn't eliminating those duplicates automatically be a rather simple thing?
You said the message indicated it had been configured more than once. That does not necessarily mean there are duplicates. You could have configured it from two different sources which means the sources are not the same (no duplicates). There's no way for the software to know which one is the correct one for you to use if that is the case. That is why it has to be done manually.
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bigralphsmith 420
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Re: Automatic Source List Repair

Post by bigralphsmith 420 »

SMG wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 1:26 pm
bigralphsmith 420 wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 11:05 amI've encountered the warning "Target Packages (X) is configured multiple times" after installing Wine.
This appears to be a rather common thing from my research and it has led me to a question:
Why is this warning (in fact all multiple config warnings) not resolved automatically by software?
If the system is smart enough to identify duplicates, shouldn't eliminating those duplicates automatically be a rather simple thing?
You said the message indicated it had been configured more than once. That does not necessarily mean there are duplicates. You could have configured it from two different sources which means the sources are not the same (no duplicates). There's no way for the software to know which one is the correct one for you to use if that is the case. That is why it has to be done manually.
I don't understand.
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Re: Automatic Source List Repair

Post by SMG »

bigralphsmith 420 wrote: Tue Aug 16, 2022 6:26 pm
SMG wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 1:26 pm
bigralphsmith 420 wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 11:05 amI've encountered the warning "Target Packages (X) is configured multiple times" after installing Wine.
This appears to be a rather common thing from my research and it has led me to a question:
Why is this warning (in fact all multiple config warnings) not resolved automatically by software?
If the system is smart enough to identify duplicates, shouldn't eliminating those duplicates automatically be a rather simple thing?
You said the message indicated it had been configured more than once. That does not necessarily mean there are duplicates. You could have configured it from two different sources which means the sources are not the same (no duplicates). There's no way for the software to know which one is the correct one for you to use if that is the case. That is why it has to be done manually.
I don't understand.
Let's try an analogy. Considering your username, I'm going to assume you are a much larger person than I am. If I go into a car and adjust the seat and mirrors and steering wheel so I can drive, that is one configuration. If you drive that car after I do, you are likely going to move the seat before you even attempt to get into the car (I am small and the seat gets moved close to the steering wheel so I can reach the pedals). You then adjust the seat and mirrors so it fits you. That is a second configuration. We configured that car more than once. They are not duplicates because I am little SMG and you are big Ralph. That is what I meant by the configurations from two different sources not being the same.

Now an automated seat updater is added to the car. The two car configurations are not duplicates so how is the updater supposed to automatically know which one is "correct"? The answer is there is no way for it to automatically know so you have to manually tell it what to use.
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Re: Automatic Source List Repair

Post by bigralphsmith 420 »

SMG wrote: Tue Aug 16, 2022 6:58 pm
bigralphsmith 420 wrote: Tue Aug 16, 2022 6:26 pm
SMG wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 1:26 pm You said the message indicated it had been configured more than once. That does not necessarily mean there are duplicates. You could have configured it from two different sources which means the sources are not the same (no duplicates). There's no way for the software to know which one is the correct one for you to use if that is the case. That is why it has to be done manually.
I don't understand.
Let's try an analogy. Considering your username, I'm going to assume you are a much larger person than I am. If I go into a car and adjust the seat and mirrors and steering wheel so I can drive, that is one configuration. If you drive that car after I do, you are likely going to move the seat before you even attempt to get into the car (I am small and the seat gets moved close to the steering wheel so I can reach the pedals). You then adjust the seat and mirrors so it fits you. That is a second configuration. We configured that car more than once. They are not duplicates because I am little SMG and you are big Ralph. That is what I meant by the configurations from two different sources not being the same.

Now an automated seat updater is added to the car. The two car configurations are not duplicates so how is the updater supposed to automatically know which one is "correct"? The answer is there is no way for it to automatically know so you have to manually tell it what to use.
Okay, so the automatic process would need to be designed to ask you some questions, right?
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Re: Automatic Source List Repair

Post by SMG »

bigralphsmith 420 wrote: Tue Aug 16, 2022 7:37 pmOkay, so the automatic process would need to be designed to ask you some questions, right?
It would probably have to ask a lot of questions and it might not even be possible to know all the questions which might be needed. You are installing software which is not part of Linux Mint so there are a lot of variables.
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Re: Automatic Source List Repair

Post by bigralphsmith 420 »

There really seem to be a lot of people here who are trying their hardest to NOT understand what I've said.
Mint is the source of this message.
Mint should be able to resolve the issues the message describes, either using it's own algorithms or by stepping the operator through a query and option selection process.
If it can identify an issue and display a warning or error message, it should be able to either step the operator through its resolution or address it on it's own through some pre-selected default behavior.
The fact that it can't is one of the big reasons why Linux has such a small percentage of the OS market.
When an operator never has to open Terminal and type in commands as a requirement to move forward, and it can maintain it's own files, that's when Mint graduates to a real GUI.
Let's hope some developers get motivated to address it.
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Re: Automatic Source List Repair

Post by Pjotr »

Nah. It looks like you messed up your Mint yourself, by installing stuff that's not in the official repos. If so, then that's your fault, and it's not up to Mint to hold your hand afterwards. :mrgreen:

In general, Linux assumes that you know what you're doing. Even user-friendly distros like Mint do.

There's no shame in damaging or even wrecking your system, because we all learned from our mistakes the hard way, when we started with Linux. I know I did. And believe me, back in the day (2006 in my case) that hard way was much harder than it is now....
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Re: Automatic Source List Repair

Post by SMG »

bigralphsmith 420 wrote: Tue Oct 25, 2022 10:10 am There really seem to be a lot of people here who are trying their hardest to NOT understand what I've said.
It appears you may be one of the people who do not understand what you've said. WINE is not part of Linux Mint. It is completely separate and thus your responsibility. The fact Linux Mint is giving you hints there is a problem with it should be seen as a bonus for you and not a deficiency of Linux Mint.
bigralphsmith 420 wrote: Tue Oct 25, 2022 10:10 amIf it can identify an issue and display a warning or error message, it should be able to either step the operator through its resolution or address it on it's own through some pre-selected default behavior.
How is it supposed to step the operator though its resolution when it does not know what you did? All it knows is you messed up your system. Linux Mint does not track how you installed WINE so it can not step you through undoing what you messed up. You have to determine what you may have done so you can fix it.
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Re: Automatic Source List Repair

Post by Hoser Rob »

The truth is that Linux 'gurus' don't let their software sources get that messed up in the first place so they have little incentive to write tools to automate fixing them (if that's even a good idea).
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