From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id S261397AbTJWArx (ORCPT ); Wed, 22 Oct 2003 20:47:53 -0400 Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org id S261380AbTJWArx (ORCPT ); Wed, 22 Oct 2003 20:47:53 -0400 Received: from ssa8.serverconfig.com ([209.51.129.179]:61608 "EHLO ssa8.serverconfig.com") by vger.kernel.org with ESMTP id S261397AbTJWAru (ORCPT ); Wed, 22 Oct 2003 20:47:50 -0400 From: "Joseph D. Wagner" To: Dave Jones Subject: Re: FEATURE REQUEST: Specific Processor Optimizations on x86 Architecture Date: Wed, 22 Oct 2003 19:47:45 +0600 User-Agent: KMail/1.5 Cc: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org References: <200310221855.15925.theman@josephdwagner.info> <20031023001547.GA18395@redhat.com> In-Reply-To: <20031023001547.GA18395@redhat.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline Message-Id: <200310221947.45996.theman@josephdwagner.info> X-AntiAbuse: This header was added to track abuse, please include it with any abuse report X-AntiAbuse: Primary Hostname - ssa8.serverconfig.com X-AntiAbuse: Original Domain - vger.kernel.org X-AntiAbuse: Originator/Caller UID/GID - [47 12] / [47 12] X-AntiAbuse: Sender Address Domain - josephdwagner.info Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org > Already done for 2.6 Version 2.6 is still in beta. Besides, this should have been done years ago before 2.6 existed. > Last time I looked these made absolutely no difference to performance > due to the only differences being on FP code. So what? Some other kernel developer -- like a module/driver developer, a real-time systems developer, a simulations developer, or just some guy messing around (read: student) -- might really want or even need those specific optimizations. Isn't this whole free-as-in-freedom software thing about giving developers and end-users options they wouldn't otherwise have under closed source alternatives? In that spirit, shouldn't developers have the option of optimizing for those specific processors? And don't give me this crap that being open source means I can do it myself. The fact is that most people can't make the changes themselves. Then, instead of chosing between an operating system they like and an operating system they hate, people end up choosing between an operating system they hate and an operating system they really hate. This is one of the reasons why I've never contributed to any open source project: the my-way-or-the-highway attitude of the existing developer base makes attempts for newbies to get inside an invintation for unnecessary pain. Unless there's some hidden section of makefile code I don't know about, you can count the number of lines that would have to be changed to meet my request on the fingers of one of your hands. If you don't make the change, I will consider it conclusive proof that the whole free-as-in-freedom is really just free-as-in-beer. Joseph D. Wagner