Nekoware II


Nekoware II is the latest attempt to build a comprehensive distribution for IRIX that is easy to use, efficient and improves upon the established Nekoware.

Distribution


Nekoware II is distributed via four primary methods:

  • HTTP/HTTPS
  • FTP
  • RSYNC
  • CDs, purchased to support the project.


The distribution operates on a quarterly release basis. QX-release-YEAR is the naming convention used.

There is also two separate distributions besides release:

* Current, which contains the latest and greatest packages. May not however be as extensively vetted as the Release, and may have some conflicts and minor quality issues
* Testing, latest and greatest packages which need to be extensively tested before being "bumped" to Current.

Development


All packages in Nekoware II are sorted into three specific categories:

  • Trunk/Base - Packages which are known foundationals for other software in Nekoware II. This includes libraries like OpenSSL, SDL and such.
  • Stem - Packages which require at least one trunk package, and have one or more packages that require them.
  • Leaf - Packages which are terminal, meaning they do not have any known required packages to install them.


Patches are stored on Gitea, currently in the Xenopatches repository.

Submission of ports can currently be done on the Nekoware subforum in tar.gz format.

Specifications


Nekoware II's basic directory structure is:

  • /opt/neko2 - Path prefix
  • /opt/neko2/lib32 - Default n32 library directory
  • /opt/neko2/share/man - Manpath directory
  • /opt/neko2/openssl - OpenSSL Directory
  • /opt/neko2/certs - SSL Cert Directory
  • /opt/neko2/src - Source code for programs
  • /opt/neko2/share/relnotes - Release Notes
  • /opt/neko2/dist - Suggested development dist directory


There may be specific exceptions to these paths.

  • Pkg Config Tool - pkgconf
  • Manpage formatter - mandoc/irix nroff
  • IRIX-specific testsuites - kyua

Compiler Rules


When possible, using MIPSPro's cc/c99/CC compilers is preferred, especially for the Trunk/Base. Leaf packages are not required to use MIPSPro. The IRIX ld should be used whenever possible, but it is less important.

Flag recommendations will be released once the tech demonstrator HaveBlue is replaced.

Packaging


We utilize the tardist format used by IRIX. If one is unable to package a port, then there are those willing to do the tardist packaging.