On kernel mailing list behavior [LWN.net]

On kernel mailing list behavior

Posted Jul 20, 2013 18:25 UTC (Sat) by tytso (✭ supporter ✭, #9993)
In reply to: On kernel mailing list behavior by daniel
Parent article: On kernel mailing list behavior

The cleanup I was referring to wasn't the telldir/seekdir hack, but the fact that the code was deeply nested with huge numbers of goto commands. I fixed it by refactoring the code and adding some functions, so the flow of control was more understandable. I don't consider such changes to be "cosmetic" by the way; that would be changing the names of variables, cleaning up english/spelling mistakes, fixing whitespace. And I do a certain amount of that too. The changes I was referring to, and the problems which Al alluded to, were not cosmetic problems, but things which are fundamental to the code's long-term maintainability.

People who are curious what the difference might be are invited to look at the your original code submission, and compare and contrast that to with is in ext3 and ext4 today.

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On kernel mailing list behavior

Posted Jul 21, 2013 20:26 UTC (Sun) by daniel (guest, #3181) [Link]

I know that Ted, and that can be plainly seen from my post. You should also realize that I consider your "cleanups" purely cosmetic, however I would never dream of claiming that you should not have done it. It made you happy, you see. It was pointless to me, since I regarded the original as well within the bounds of what any professional ought to be able to read without effort.

Maybe I am wrong about that. However if you want to see a lot of long functions, go read the FreeBSD code. Same type of subsystem. Multi-hundred like functions everywhere you look. They like it that way. I like it either way: I am generally more concerned about the substance.

Taste is very much subjective. If you want to exercise yours in the subsystem you maintain, then by all means do so. That is your business, not mine. If you do exercise your taste, you can do so in a polite way.

Anyway, it is clear that we differ. I am saying, clearly cosmetic, you are saying fundamental. Well, the great thing is, you were able to change it so you were happy. Why you were berating me then, and still are now, is beyond me. Now we as a community have put a word to such behaviour: toxic. And you are not by any means a prominent offender. This is a great time to sit back, take a deep breath, and ask yourself why you felt compelled to act that way, and why you feel compelled to defend it now. I am telling you it is harmful and hurtful, you respond by doing it more. It is not even the real you, this is something more akin to road rage, the main difference being "behind a keyboard" as opposed to "behind a steering wheel".