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Hi, I'm sure there are plenty of threads on here with the information I seek but after trying the integrated search feature as well as Google's current site search, I ...
  1. 05-13-2007 #1
    varaonaid
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    *.deb vs *.rpm

    Hi,

    I'm sure there are plenty of threads on here with the information I seek but after trying the integrated search feature as well as Google's current site search, I can't find what I need.

    I've seen a lot of (sometimes fierce) opinions expressed as to which package type is superior but I've not seen a lot of information to back that up. I'm wondering if anyone could please tell me the differences in these two software formats and why that data makes one better than another (or perhaps makes them the same). I noticed that the top two distros on distrowatch each use one of the formats (Ubuntu and PCLOS) which peaked my interest in the differences all the more.

    Thanks in advance! I look forward to your replies.
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  2. 05-13-2007 #2
    daark.child
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    I don't think one is superior than the other. They are quite similar in functionality and have the same pros and limitations e.g. you have to resolve dependencies manually when installing rpms with rpm and debs with dpkg. What tends to differ is the wrappers around rpm and dpkg which provide additional functionality e.g automatic dependency checking and resolution. On most Debian based distros, apt and its related tools are the preferred wrapper and on rpm based distros, there is a wider selection e.g. yum, urpmi, yast, smart, apt etc. For years apt was the superior tool because it had a few years head start, but tools like yum, urpmi and SMART have caught up and have more or less the same features as apt.

    The debates you see on the net about rpm vs deb, tend to be really flawed because a lot of people compare apt vs rpm instead of comparing rpm vs dpkg. Apt can be used with rpm based distros so its not unique to Debian based distros. Its just that many rpm based distros don't use it by default.
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  3. 05-13-2007 #3
    Oxygen
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    Quote Originally Posted by varaonaid View Post
    I've seen a lot of (sometimes fierce) opinions expressed as to which package type is superior
    .DEB IS THE BEST! FOR SPARTA!
    Last edited by techieMoe; 05-13-2007 at 03:09 PM.
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  4. 05-17-2007 #4
    abhishek456
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    however they are tools which give you option of installing both .deb or .rpm irrespective of your distro

    Smart package manager is one of such

    Smart Package Manager - Labix

    You can also use tool called "Alien" to convert rpm to deb and viceversa

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