Date: Sat, 5 Feb 2000 12:33:38 -0800 From: "Michael J. Hammel" <mjhammel@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> I'm curious why any new plug-ins should be added to the core *at all*. Gimp's distribution is fairly large as it is. Isn't it getting time to limit additional plug-ins to the core distribution to plug-ins which are considered "vital" in some way? Even some estoric file plug-ins need not necessarily be included with the core package. Throwing in the kitchen sink is what's starting to bloat some Linux distros. Furthermore, look at it from the standpoint of someone trying to package a Linux distribution (especially vis a vis esoteric file formats and other things that depend upon external software). If our jpeg plugin is part of the core (as an example, I don't want to debate jpeg per se), then installing the gimp requires installing jpeg. If we start forcing a unitary build, then eventually we have everything depending upon everything else, and we get into the Windows mess all over again. It *must* be possible to build and install plugins separate from the Gimp tree. Now, that doesn't mean that anything should change *right now*. It's entirely too close to the release, as many people have pointed out, to change something fundamental even if it means an improvement. It seems to me that right now everyone except people working on advanced development should focus on the release. (And yes, however good Print 3.1 becomes, and even if 3.2 is ready before Gimp 1.2 is, Gimp 1.2 will contain Print 3.0. At some point down the road we might want to put Print 3.2 into a Gimp 1.2 refresh or point release, but that's another matter.) -- Robert Krawitz <rlk@xxxxxxxxxxxx> http://www.tiac.net/users/rlk/ Tall Clubs International -- http://www.tall.org/ or 1-888-IM-TALL-2 Member of the League for Programming Freedom -- mail lpf@xxxxxxxxxxxx Project lead for The Gimp Print -- http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net "Linux doesn't dictate how I work, I dictate how Linux works." --Eric Crampton
