I noticed that http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Packaging:Conflicts was pretty sparse in the rationale department. I'd like to update the page with this information:

== Conflicts ==

Whenever possible, Fedora packages should avoid conflicting with each other. Conflicts result in a transaction set where the user has to decipher the error message and make some sort of decision. The transaction set doesn't provide information to the user about why two packages conflict to help them make an informed decision.

As Fedora packagers, we try to make it so both packages will install and run. Unfortunately, this is not always possible but we can usually make it so that both packages can install and the user can decide which package to enable when they configure the new package.. In a few cases, we do have to use Conflicts:. These guidelines illustrate how conflicts should be handled in Fedora, specifically concerning when and when not to use the Conflicts: field.