Benjamin Scott wrote:
>
> On Tue, 1 Aug 2000, Karl J. Runge wrote:
> > Boy this is really awful. IM(ns)HO, one should *never* change libc
> > incompatibly. It is OK to add new features to libc and other basic
> > libraries, but one should never have it break existing apps (unless,
> > say, you are bringing in a new bin format and have zero installed base:
> > e.g. a.out -> ELF circa 1995).
>
> Linux has a lot of strengths, but binary compatibility isn't one of them.
>
(snip)
> The problem is, as I call it from my armchair, that the developers of Open
> Source/Free Software projects are naturally working in an Open Source
> environment where things are being rebuilt a lot. What's a few more rebuilds
> to make such-and-such a program work, when you're already recompiling the
> world on a weekly basis?
>
> --
> Ben Scott <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> | "Come not between the Dragon and his wrath." |
> | - William Shakespeare, _King_Lear_, I.i.124 |
>
Nice sig.
On more important stuff - Linus' statement on LKML about binary
compatibility is he doesn't care. He ensures compatibility within a
release (2.2, 2.0, etc), but between major releases, he doesn't. I've
seen similar statements from Alan Cox. Rationale:
1. This is Open Source world. If you have the source, you can
recompile. If you don't have the source, it's your problem getting
the source. Also, don't come to him with problems on systems with
binary modules. Insist on Open Source, or don't complain to them when
it breaks.
2. Binary compatibility means just that - if a bad feature is there,
you have to keep it. Kruft accumulates, and changes become hard to do
in a way that doesn't break compatibility. He's about fixing stuff -
if there's a better way to do it, you use that, and recompile your
source (you've got it from 1, right?).
--
jeff smith
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
thought for the day: Reality is just a crutch for people who can't
handle science fiction.
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