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That's a feature, not a bug. Your original system stays clean and if you mess up your fink or macports installation you can just throw the whole thing in the trash and start over from scratch.

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What's wrong with only installing Python/Perl/Ruby if the native one doesn't satisfy the dependencies, as opposed to (currently) installing it every time?

The problem is that the versions of the non-macports Ruby/Python/etc aren't managed by the ports system. So you're in for weird dependency mismatches if you upgrade your system version of Python.

Self-contained keeps it simpler. Just use a script to set up your $PATH as needed.

The people who tried to get the Gentoo Portage system running on OS X a few years ago tried that idea. It ended in tears.

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