>> I know Patrick recommended using apt-get, but I'm going to counter-recommend pulling any third-party code you use into your own source tree and building it
> Counter-counter-recommended. This is needlessly duplicating immense amount of work that distro packagers do.
I think that distro packagers do far too much work: they sometimes do not include compilation options that are very useful, apply distro-specific patches and add too many dependencies. And when you have a problem, they should become the primary point of contact, not the "upstream" writer of the software which has zero control on how it is packaged.
For the vast majority of people the distro packages are fine, but for some people the distro packages are an inconvenience.
> Counter-counter-recommended. This is needlessly duplicating immense amount of work that distro packagers do.
I think that distro packagers do far too much work: they sometimes do not include compilation options that are very useful, apply distro-specific patches and add too many dependencies. And when you have a problem, they should become the primary point of contact, not the "upstream" writer of the software which has zero control on how it is packaged.
For the vast majority of people the distro packages are fine, but for some people the distro packages are an inconvenience.