Messages in this thread | | | Date | Thu, 28 Sep 2000 11:09:54 +0200 | From | Helge Hafting <> | Subject | Re: Linux kernel modules development in C++ |
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Timur Tabi wrote:
> But that applies to C code as well. In fact, the #2 gripe I hear about Linux > development is how the API's change so often and without any regard to existing > code that depends on it. (#1 gripe: the dearth of good development tools).
I consider #2 an advantage. Interfaces are brutally changed, _when that will improve the kernel_. So the kernel is improved even though existing code breaks. The new pagecache broke all filesystems forcing much rewriting. And it was a good thing too: speeding it up noticeably, nearly halving memory use in some cases, and lessening complexity. The latter part is also good for SMP scaling.
Oses that don't occationally change internal API's get stuck with bad design decicions. We should ideally design perfect from the start, but face it, that don't always happen. And it is sometimes impossible as hardware and sw ideas nobody thought of before show up.
Helge Hafting - To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in the body of a message to majordomo@vger.kernel.org Please read the FAQ at http://www.tux.org/lkml/
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