Re: starting with 2.7

[Indrek Kruusa]

On 4 Jan 2005, at 07:36, Al Viro wrote:
> On Tue, Jan 04, 2005 at 06:46:49AM +0100, Willy Tarreau wrote:
> > On Mon, Jan 03, 2005 at 10:14:42PM +0000, Christoph Hellwig wrote:
> > > > Gosh! I bought an ATI video card, I bought a VMware license, 
etc.... I
> > > > want to keep using them. Changing a "stable" kernel will 
continuously
> > > > annoy users and vendors.
> > >
> > > So buy some Operating System that supports the propritary software of
> > > your choice but stop annoying us.
> >
> > That's what he did. But it was not written in the notice that it 
could stop
> > working at any time :-)
>
>
>     Do you want a long list of message-IDs going way, way back? Ones 
of Linus'
>     postings saying that there never had been any promise whatsoever 
of in-kernel
>     interfaces staying unchanged...


Eh? "you should avoid Linux - experimental project indeed!". Sad, but 
this is almost true already: can you name the stable version of the 
kernel which is in main public use? When I take a look from distros then:

Mandrake 10.2 snapshot (Cooker): kernel-2.6.8.1.20mdk-1-1mdk.i586.rpm

SuSe (SRPM for new 9.2): kernel-source-2.6.8-24.src.rpm

Fedora (update for FC3): kernel-2.6.9-1.724_FC3.i686.rpm


And inside proper .src.rpm-s are lot of stuff. So how those fixes inside 
2.6.10 will reach the end-user? 2.6.[x < 10] + patch+patch+patch...

It means that for end user (me) the stable kernel 2.6.10 is not just 
usable. And of course I will not test any vanilla kernel because my MIDI 
programs-devices/USB gadgets/connect+point+and+click will usually stop 
working by reasons which are not bug but implementation related. So what 
I should report to my distro provider? Please recode this program 
because i am keen to test newest kernel? But how then should I provide 
my help with kernel testing?

Maybe you need to set up a pool of patches with full detailed information:
- bug fixes
- security related fixes
- feature changes
- status flag: test/stable
- dependencies :)

This is what is needed - how and when a 2.6.x stable kernel will have 
released (strategy of kernel development) is not a question at all. 
Vanilla kernel will never reach end-users anyway.
OK, don't take it too seriously :)

regards,
Indrek

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