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From: linux@horizon.com
To: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org
Subject: Re: time for some drivers to be removed?
Date: 28 Jul 2003 07:12:36 -0000	[thread overview]
Message-ID: <20030728071236.15338.qmail@science.horizon.com> (raw)

Yes, the term "obsolete" is a bit confusing to end-users.

When applied to a device driver, there are three separate definitions
that are at risk of being conflated:
- The hardware it supports is obsolete (EISA is obsolete)
- The code (which may still work) has been superseded by a new improved
  version (OSS is obsolete, Linus' original HD driver is obsolete)
- The code has not kept up with the kernel and no longer works with the
  current kernel.

The third category is what we're trying to identify here.

The risk of confusion is particularly large because often two of those
definitions apply at once.

If you want a suitably specific term for #3, I'd try CONFIG_BITROT.

I think that clearly conveys, in one word, "this code used to work, but
no longer does due to a lack of maintenance, and unless someone
breathes life back into it it will be given a decent burial."

(The other option that comes to mind is CONFIG_ORPHANED, which says
about the same thing, but might be unnecessarily insulting to a nominal
maintainer who hasn't been able to keep it up to date.  "Orphaned" implies
that nobody's trying.  "Bit rot" implies only a lack of *success*.)

             reply	other threads:[~2003-07-28  6:57 UTC|newest]

Thread overview: 46+ messages / expand[flat|nested]  mbox.gz  Atom feed  top
2003-07-28  7:12 linux [this message]
  -- strict thread matches above, loose matches on Subject: below --
2003-08-14  5:34 time for some drivers to be removed? John Bradford
2003-08-13 20:55 John Bradford
2003-08-13 20:50 ` Adrian Bunk
2003-08-13 20:55 ` Bill Davidsen
2003-08-05 12:42 Mikael Pettersson
2003-08-05 13:03 ` Adrian Bunk
2003-08-05 13:35   ` Mikael Pettersson
2003-08-05 13:48     ` Adrian Bunk
2003-08-05 14:01       ` Mikael Pettersson
2003-08-06 10:06         ` Claus-Justus Heine
2003-08-09 19:40           ` Adrian Bunk
2003-08-05 16:35 ` Alan Cox
2003-08-05 18:47   ` Leopold Gouverneur
2003-07-27 16:22 John Bradford
2003-07-25 11:10 John Bradford
2003-07-24 18:29 John Bradford
2003-07-24 18:31 ` Robert P. J. Day
2003-07-24 19:31   ` Eli Carter
2003-07-25 10:48 ` Bas Mevissen
2003-07-24 14:43 John Bradford
2003-07-24 19:24 ` Brian Jackson
2003-07-24 12:20 Robert P. J. Day
2003-07-24 14:58 ` Alan Cox
2003-07-24 15:34   ` Bas Mevissen
2003-07-24 17:32     ` Diego Calleja García
2003-07-24 17:50       ` Robert P. J. Day
2003-07-24 19:16         ` Diego Calleja García
2003-07-24 19:43           ` Robert P. J. Day
2003-07-24 18:02       ` Samuel Flory
2003-07-24 19:07     ` Alan Cox
2003-07-25 10:48       ` Bas Mevissen
2003-07-27 15:31 ` Adrian Bunk
2003-07-27 15:59   ` David D. Hagood
2003-07-27 16:18     ` Adrian Bunk
2003-07-27 16:40     ` Alan Cox
2003-07-27 17:00       ` Adrian Bunk
2003-07-27 18:45       ` David D. Hagood
2003-07-27 20:40         ` Alan Cox
2003-07-27 20:56           ` Adrian Bunk
2003-07-27 20:56             ` Alan Cox
2003-07-28  2:23               ` Herbert Pötzl
2003-07-29 19:33               ` Adrian Bunk
2003-08-13 20:16                 ` Bill Davidsen
2003-08-09 18:04   ` David Woodhouse
2003-08-09 19:36     ` Adrian Bunk

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