From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id S261153AbVABWPn (ORCPT ); Sun, 2 Jan 2005 17:15:43 -0500 Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org id S261176AbVABWPn (ORCPT ); Sun, 2 Jan 2005 17:15:43 -0500 Received: from emailhub.stusta.mhn.de ([141.84.69.5]:6918 "HELO mailout.stusta.mhn.de") by vger.kernel.org with SMTP id S261153AbVABWPg (ORCPT ); Sun, 2 Jan 2005 17:15:36 -0500 Date: Sun, 2 Jan 2005 23:15:34 +0100 From: Adrian Bunk To: William Lee Irwin III Cc: Andries Brouwer , Maciej Soltysiak , linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org Subject: Re: starting with 2.7 Message-ID: <20050102221534.GG4183@stusta.de> References: <1697129508.20050102210332@dns.toxicfilms.tv> <20050102203615.GL29332@holomorphy.com> <20050102212427.GG2818@pclin040.win.tue.nl> <20050102214211.GM29332@holomorphy.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline In-Reply-To: <20050102214211.GM29332@holomorphy.com> User-Agent: Mutt/1.5.6+20040907i Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org On Sun, Jan 02, 2005 at 01:42:11PM -0800, William Lee Irwin III wrote: > > This is not optimism. This is experience. Every ``stable'' kernel I've > seen is a pile of incredibly stale code where vi'ing any file in it > instantly reveals numerous months or years old bugs fixed upstream. > What is gained in terms of reducing the risk of regressions is more > than lost by the loss of critical examination and by a long longshot. The main advantage with stable kernels in the good old days (tm) when 4 and 6 were even numbers was that you knew if something didn't work, and upgrading to a new kernel inside this stable kernel series had a relatively low risk of new breakages. This meant one big migration every few years and relatively easy upgrades between stable series kernels. Nowadays in 2.6, every new 2.6 kernel has several regressions compared to the previous one, and additionally obsolete but used code like ipchains and devfs is scheduled for removal making upgrades even harder for many users. There's the point that most users should use distribution kernels, but consider e.g. that there are poor souls with new hardware not supported by the 3 years old 2.4.18 kernel in the stable part of your Debian distribution. > -- wli cu Adrian -- "Is there not promise of rain?" Ling Tan asked suddenly out of the darkness. There had been need of rain for many days. "Only a promise," Lao Er said. Pearl S. Buck - Dragon Seed