Where should stuff be installed?

[Fahrvergnuugen]

Ive comented in several threads in here that Apple has changed the default $PATH variable. /usr/local/bin is no longer set by default [neither is /usr/local/sbin though I'm not sure what sbin is for].

Well, a lot of the precompiled binaries that I've downloaded from macosx.forked.net install themselves in /usr/local/bin

So is the solution to add /usr/local/bin to the path? Or should we be installing stuff in /bin [the bin thats in the jaguar PATH by default].

Should I just copy everything from /usr/local/bin to /bin and then make a symlink of /bin to /usr/local/bin ?

What was the reasoning for moving it [something to do with POSIX maybe]?

 

[ladavacm]

man hier is quite precise:

     /bin/    user utilities fundamental to both single-user and multi-user
              environments.  Putting things here is like jogging on busy motorway, 
              with eyes tied

     /usr/    contains the majority of user utilities and applications

              bin/      common utilities, programming tools, and applications.  Putting things
                        here is like jogging on busy motorway,  with eyes tied

It's quite simple, folks. Traditionally, /usr/local/bin is for the locally added software. If you have some of those, you modify your PATH if you want to use them easily. Put this modification into .profile or .cshrc, depending on your shell of choice.