added a section describing how to handle large amounts of architecture-independent...

[developers-reference.git] / developers-reference.sgml

diff --git a/developers-reference.sgml b/developers-reference.sgml
index 9ae4e099e44cf431b1035b2268f86b0297388c4b..f108203e2bda90fe3cf4867efc6018620551e27e 100644 (file)
--- a/developers-reference.sgml
+++ b/developers-reference.sgml
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@
   <!entity % commondata  SYSTEM "common.ent" > %commondata;
 
   <!-- CVS revision of this document -->
-  <!entity cvs-rev "$Revision: 1.168 $">
+  <!entity cvs-rev "$Revision: 1.169 $">
   <!-- if you are translating this document, please notate the CVS
        revision of the developers reference here -->
   <!--
@@ -3348,7 +3348,6 @@ Lisp packages should register themselves with
 &file-lisp-controller;.
 </list>
         </sect1>
-      </sect>
 
 <!--
        <sect1 id="custom-config-files">Custom configuration files
@@ -3365,7 +3364,25 @@ Lisp packages should register themselves with
        sympa may be an example package
 -->    
 
+       <sect1 id="bpp-archindepdata">Architecture-independent data
+       <p>
+       It is not uncommon to have a large amount of architecture-independent
+       data packaged with a program. For example, collection of icons,
+       wallpapers or other graphic files, or audio files. If the size of
+       this data is negligible compared to the size of the remainder of the
+       package, you can keep it all in the same package.
 
+       <p>
+       However, if the size of the data is considerable, consider splitting
+       it out into a separate, architecture-independent package
+       ("_all.deb"). By doing this, you avoid needless duplication of the
+       same data into eleven or more .debs per each architecture. While
+       this adds some extra overhead into the Packages files, it can save a
+       lot of disk space on Debian mirrors, and it also reduces processing
+       time of Lintian or Linda when run over the entire Debian archive. 
+       </sect1>
+
+      </sect>
 
 
   <chapt id="beyond-pkging">