On Mon, Sep 17, 2012 at 3:08 PM, Dale <rdalek1...@gmail.com> wrote: > Michael Mol wrote: >> On Mon, Sep 17, 2012 at 2:26 PM, Dale <rdalek1...@gmail.com> wrote: >>> Michael Mol wrote: >>>> On Mon, Sep 17, 2012 at 2:00 PM, Volker Armin Hemmann >>>> <volkerar...@googlemail.com> wrote: >>>>> Am Montag, 17. September 2012, 12:34:12 schrieb cov...@ccs.covici.com: >>>>>> OK, sorry if this is a dumb question, but I did search for it using make >>>>>> menuconfig, but could not actually find it! I have all my usb host >>>>>> controller drivers as modules, if that makes any difference. I am using >>>>>> 3.4.0-gentoo. >>>>> hit / in menuconfig. It is there. >>>> Although I do believe you need to remove the CONFIG_ prefix before you >>>> search. >>>> >>> Also, there are also other options that must be turned on for it to show >>> up. I had to enable other things before I could find it in the menu. >>> This is another reason I asked the question on whether it is really >>> needed or not. It wasn't just one thing I had to enable but a couple >>> other things too. I'm still not sure I need either of those but . . . >> You do, for the same reason you need electricity; you may not use >> electricity directly, but something you use does. >> >> Similarly, you may not need this config option, but something you use >> does (or something you use uses something you use which does). >> >> Further, the config option won't be available unless all of the things >> _it_ uses are enabled. So, if this config option X isn't available >> because it needs config option Y, you need config option Y, because >> you need config option X, because you need udisks, because you need >> something which needs udisks. >> >> So if some option X says "don't enable this unless you need it", and >> you need some option Z, which says it needs option X, then, yes, you >> need option X, because you need option Z. >> >> This is what Volker meant when he said that there was no 'unsure' at >> play. Since you're sure you want udisk (because you installed it), >> then, logically following, you're sure you want whatever udisk depends >> on. (Either that, or you're not being logical. ^^ ) >> > > > But, I was still unsure. If it wants me to enable the option for > battery monitoring, do I do that too? I don't have any batteries but it > wants the option enabled so to use your logic, I must need it because it > asks for it even tho I don't use it and can't use it.
When it comes to software, even if you don't actively use a thing, you may depend on it being there. The reasons involved could come from any of dozens of programming issues you may be unaware of or uncaring of; it could come from the need of a programmer to simplify his reasoning about a system in order to simplify his code (or the problem his code is trying to solve). It could come from some automatic linking process that looks for a symbol even if the function that symbol represents is never called in practice. It could come from some indirect artifact of the thing being there. You're trying to apply a holistic reasoning basis to a deterministic dependency problem. That kind of logic is the same kind of logic that leads to stories such as "but why won't you plug in your computer?" "because it makes a lot of noise. Why won't my computer work?" "Because it needs power, so you need to plug it in." "But it makes a lot of noise." Apologies for the crass analogy, but it really is the same thing, just at a different technical depth. -- :wq
