Re: Kernel interface changes (was Re: cdrecord problems on

Alan Cox (alan@lxorguk.ukuu.org.uk)
Thu, 4 Feb 1999 04:39:54 +0000 (GMT)

> Stepping back to the bigger picture, the point I hope is clear. We need
> to be much more careful during the 2.2 series to minimize interface
> changes as much as possible. This includes device driver authors, who

Yep. Right now 2.2.0 and 2.2.1 appear to be compatible. 2.2.2pre1 likewise.
2.2.1ac* isnt for stuff that directly hits current->file things (unusual)
but the other thing big file arrays needed that affects struct file is
already in linus tree (32 bit use counts - since you can open a file 100,000
times now)

> These sorts of things are important. Everyone in the Linux community
> --- glibc developers, kernel developer, Linux distribution maintainers,
> application developers --- needs to do their part; it's not just someone
> else's problem.

Yes. We also have to find the right boundary between never changing (the MSDOS
stagnation/windows liability and effective death over time, sun 18month bug
fix) and excessive changes.

I wouldnt deny any of that.

Alan

-
To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in
the body of a message to majordomo@vger.rutgers.edu
Please read the FAQ at http://www.tux.org/lkml/