TYPO3 Core

It works without curl if your server setup supports that.

Thats what I tried to say:
Of course I will work if sa server is available and its curl is set.

BUT:
typo3 is running on lots and lots and lots of hosted webspace.
That what it is made for, too, do you remember?

So in lots and lots and lots of cases
the new and hopefully easy to install
typo3 6.2 LTS WILL OT WORK!!
as long as curl is OFF during installation.

Thats the point.

I guess it would be a very small and easy feature
to allow curl during the process of installing
a new preconfigured distribution.

typo3 is on its best way to become an easy to install CMS.
Up and running in minutes - with real content pages and los of demos of its features.

Dont disturb this user-friendly process by
this simple and user-unfriendly curl = off
;-))

Still I don't get the problem.

Please describe what problem actually appears for you when curl is off?

I'm running 6.2 on several shared hostings already and never had a problem with this.

Actually you run into problems if you enable curl and it is not available on the server!

When curl is off you wont get not Extensions.
But more important: You wont get the
very fine new IntroductionPackages for 6.2

Imagine install a new Windows or Linux.
But before you can run any software you have to set a registry-field.
But you dont know for what registry-field you have to search for ...

I understand your point, but your first sentence is not true.
I never had any server having a problem to retrieve the list with default configuration. (curl is off by default)

So I wonder what is so strange on your server. Must be some PHP configuration issue.

Is it possible that curl depends on
the php setting "allow_url_fopen = off".
Dont secure settings for php do use this value?

If allow_url_fopen = off then curl has to be on?
If allow_url_fopen = on then curl does not matter?

Then setting
allow_url_fopen = on
inside php directly (or php.ini) or checking from install-tool if set
would be a solution?

Should or could there be a notice to the
user when installing typo3 with FIRST_INSTALL?

According to http://at2.php.net/manual/en/filesystem.configuration.php 'allow_url_fopen' is enabled by default.
But I'll try to come up with a patch that issues a warning during installation.

Patch set 2 for branch master of project Packages/TYPO3.CMS has been pushed to the review server.
It is available at https://review.typo3.org/30486