APT2 to Accelerate Debian Package Installation
Debian and Ubuntu developer Julian Andres Klode has reported in his blog about the progress of his APT2 software, an alternative implementation of the Debian Advanced Packaging Tool (APT).
APT2, whose development Klode began in August 2009, consists mainly of the libapt library that prepares package management functions. The capt command line tool provides the front end. The programmer implements the glib cross-platform library and the new Vala object-oriented language for it.
The database backend used most recently is SQLite 3, which can store comprehensive metadata and converts queries to common SQL statements. It also helps increase the performance of the APT implementation. According to Klode, capt searches eight times faster than aptitude and around three times faster than apt-cache.
The capt CLI uses the readline library, which is also in bash, and thus provides an interactive package shell with history (and command completion to follow). Some usage examples:
jak@hp:~/Desktop/APT2:temp$ capt
apt$ help
APT2 0.0.20091213 command-line frontend
Commands:
config dump Dump the configuration
config get OPTION Get the given option
config set OPTION VALUE Set the given option
search EXPRESSION Search for the given expression
show PACKAGE Show all versions of the given package
sources list Print a list of all sources
version Print the version of APT2
Klode hopes to have a first release of APT2 completed by Christmas 2009, as he indicates in his blog. It will partly depend on whether Vala 0.7.9 or a newer version is ready.
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Linux Kernel 6.17 is Available
Linus Torvalds has announced that the latest kernel has been released with plenty of core improvements and even more hardware support.
-
Kali Linux 2025.3 Released with New Hacking Tools
If you're a Kali Linux fan, you'll be glad to know that the third release of this famous pen-testing distribution is now available with updates for key components.
-
Zorin OS 18 Beta Available for Testing
The latest release from the team behind Zorin OS is ready for public testing, and it includes plenty of improvements to make it more powerful, user-friendly, and productive.
-
Fedora Linux 43 Beta Now Available for Testing
Fedora Linux 43 Beta ships with Gnome 49 and KDE Plasma 6.4 (and other goodies).
-
USB4 Maintainer Leaves Intel
Michael Jamet, one of the primary maintainers of USB4 and Thunderbolt drivers, has left Intel, leaving a gaping hole for the Linux community to deal with.
-
Budgie 10.9.3 Now Available
The latest version of this elegant and configurable Linux desktop aligns with changes in Gnome 49.
-
KDE Linux Alpha Available for Daring Users
It's official, KDE Linux has arrived, but it's not quite ready for prime time.
-
AMD Initiates Graphics Driver Updates for Linux Kernel 6.18
This new AMD update focuses on power management, display handling, and hardware support for Radeon GPUs.
-
AerynOS Alpha Release Available
With a choice of several desktop environments, AerynOS 2025.08 is almost ready to be your next operating system.
-
AUR Repository Still Under DDoS Attack
Arch User Repository continues to be under a DDoS attack that has been going on for more than two weeks.