I've kind of missed most of this discussion, but using some type of
distributed change tracking tool might be useful. That way, we can
attempt to force document updates before code changes are merged into
the main source tree.
: The documentation could probably be laid out in a format similar to
[stuff deleted]
What about requiring some type of formal requirements and design
documents for each kernal subsystem/device driver? These wouldn't
necessarily need to be pretty, structured documents, but they
would need to have certain specific information that could convey
information about a subsystem to the level of understanding
necessary to fix minor bugs and otherwise maintain the code.
Like you said, interface documents that describe how the subsystem/
device driver interacts with the rest of the kernel are particularly
valuable.
: I would be willing to maintain the files, although I don't have enough
: knowledge yet to actually write most if any of them.
I would also be willing to help coordinate any efforts and possibly
create doument templates or such to help get people started.
: If this is to be done there needs to be a seperate list for it, or at
: least an understanding not to discuss it (much if any) here.
Agreeed. Documentation discussions should be moved to a separte list
as soon as possible.
Randy Scott <scottr@wwa.com>