March 2002 Archives
In relation to my recent article on rolling your own Mac OS X CD, it seems that for those who are interested, an overview of the Mac OS X .pkg format might be useful
The information I present here is mostly based on reverse engineering. As a result, there are probably huge gaping holes in the information I outline. If anyone has corrections and additional information, then please advise me. I have discovered Apple does provide some information on packages, but they don't detail some of the files commonly found only in Apple packages.
Most third party developers are recommended to not use the package format, unless the facilities it offers are necessary. Instead the drag and drop application bundle from a mounted disk image is the recommended install option.
Our shiny new operating system has been around for a while now. Even to the most die-hard it has become obvious that Mac OS X is here and here to stay. So the big question is not IF one should update, but WHEN.
| Overview Those of you who fix/setup/install OS X Macs know what a nightmare it currently is to get to the latest OS X revision, especially if rebuilding a machine from scratch. Not everyone has broadband access making Software Update less useful, and regardless, you end up spending hours staring at the "optimizing" stage over and over again. However if you have a CD Burner, legal copy of Mac OS X 10.1 and don't mind losing a few languages, it is possible to compile a CD which will bring you straight to 10.1.3 inclusive of all the appropriate updates. |
