I created a script that always installs apps from their official source
https://github.com/Tsu-gu/appfetch/
It’s a proof of concept of an idea I had a while ago. I dislike having to hunt down apps for my Linux machine when I want them from an official source. Some apps are packages as tarballs, some as .debs, some as install scripts that download a binary, some are flatpaks and snaps.
I created a yaml file with only verified apps from flathub and snapcraft, and added a few apps outside of them that I could think of.
The ultimate goal is the user just typing the names of what they want, and the script will just get it. They shouldn’t waste time with picking the right source.
That’s understandable. Truth be told I probably wouldn’t trust this either if I didn’t make it. Anything can be hiding in the custom field.
Now I’m wondering, if it were bundled with an OCI sandboxing system, that would address my issues with Flatpack and Snap. Technology has moved on and Flatpack has stagnated, and Snap’s just an attempt to centralize control and distribution. It’s time for a redesign, specifically focusing on supply chain attacks, with sandboxing all the way down.
What do you mean by stagnated? I don’t keep up with its development but it seems pretty feature-complete.
If developers move on to something else I will modify the database accordingly. But as long as snap and flatpak are the official methods they will stay.
Ironically, it’s been in the news lately because of a talk given at LAS. Here’s a breakdown of the video, for people like myself who hate watching talking heads.
Basically, development on Flatpak core has mostly stalled. And there’s a lot of work yet to be done; efforts to rebase it on OSI, for instance.
Nobody’s claiming it’s dead; it’s popular and widely used by a lot of people - it’s just that nobody is actively maintaining the Flatpak project anymore.