
Bits from the dpkg project: 1.17.x series, general news - JoshTriplett
https://lists.debian.org/debian-devel-announce/2015/04/msg00007.html
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JoshTriplett
The most notable item here, in my opinion:

    
    
        * Add support for versioned Provides [!]:
          - Packages can provide a specific version, “virtual (= 1.0)” which will
            be honored, previously it would just be accepted when parsing.
          - Non-versioned virtual packages will not satisfy versioned dependencies.
          - Versioned virtual packages will satisfy non-versioned dependencies.
    

This has been a known gap for years.

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0x0

        * Installation, removal and purging now always reset 
          the want status, so this now resets the holds.
    

I guess I can't hold the oracle virtualbox packages any more, to upgrade those
at my own pace with "apt-get install virtualbox-4.3", while having "apt-get
upgrade" take care of the rest at all other times?

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JoshTriplett
You can, you'll just need to re-hold them after upgrading them. "apt-get
upgrade" still won't affect the virtualbox packages.

Though, out of curiosity, why virtualbox rather than kvm?

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alphapapa
Does KVM do anything like VirtualBox's seamless mode?

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JoshTriplett
Somewhat. With SPICE, you can resize the window to automatically change the
resolution, and copy/paste between host and guest.

Alternatively, if you're virtualizing Windows, you can use seamlessrdp or
similar.

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alphapapa
I hadn't heard about seamlessrdp before. That sounds nice, except for, "Please
note that Windows 7 and Windows 8 are not supported." I usually use XP in VMs
when possible, but that becomes less and less possible...

What about performance, though? And compatibility, like with XP guests? I used
QEMU a long time ago, but when VirtualBox became available, it was a big step
forward in performance and usability. KVM happened since then, but last I
heard it still lagged behind VB (but I probably haven't kept up).

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JoshTriplett
It's hard to beat KVM's performance, especially with virtio drivers.
Compatibility is great as well. In terms of usability, I wouldn't be surprised
if VirtualBox provides a friendlier UI.

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voltagex_
I don't understand what the new cross arch flags do. Are they for cross
compiling packages?

