[hylafax-devel] Re: config/usr-xon & usr-rts

[Darren Nickerson <darren@dazza.org>]

>>>>> On 24 Jun 2000, "Dmitry" == Dmitry Bely wrote:

  Dmitry> Tim Rice <tim@trr.metro.net> writes:

  +> I'm suggesting that just because we don't understand why the original
  +> author made those paticular config entries, is no reason to remove them.

  Dmitry> ... if the original author really worked around some firmware bugs
  Dmitry> and had enough skills/experience to do that right :-) This is not the
  Dmitry> case here (as well as in many other config templates).


You have not met the burden of proof on that one yet . . . at least I don't 
think you can say the person who wrote the lines in question was lacking 
skill/experience.

  +> It may be apropriate to comment them out if they are no longer
  +> needed on current models.

  Dmitry> Basing on all my programming experiece, I don't agree completely. All
  Dmitry> non-obvious code, not commented well, should be removed/rewritten as 
soon
  Dmitry> as possible. Support of such code costs much more than writing 
properly
  Dmitry> designed new one, believe me :-)


If it's clearly wrong, it should go. We're nowhere near that point though, 
have you demonstrated that it is incorrect and I have somehow missed that? If 
so, sorry. Otherwise we should decide on a policy of either enabling it when 
supported, or adding the right enabling code but commenting it in default 
installs. By all means let's tidy up the commenting, but I don't think 
deleting it is warranted based on the discussion I've read to date. Alas, we 
don't have the resources to re-write all non-obvious code in HylaFAX (that 
would be most of it), but a little more commenting would certainly be 
appropriate.


  +> What I am trying to avoid is removing altogether entries from the
  +> config files that MAY still be necessary for some older models.

  Dmitry> ... only if it is clear why they are/were necessary.

  Dmitry> If somebody claims that 2*2=5, but does not explain why, also just
  Dmitry> leave it there in hope that it's really so with some older CPUs?
  Dmitry> :-)))


Of course not. Have you shown us that the lines are wrong? I don't think you 
have. I think you may have shown us what the spec recommends, but I don't 
remember seeing what the modem actually does, and a demonstration that the 
current default config is as wrong as 2*2=5.


  +> If they are left in as comments then the knowledge is not lost.

  Dmitry> There is no *knowledge* is such comments, just a frustration for the
  Dmitry> reader, because nobody will understand why it's commented out.


HUH? Surely if the line were to be commented out there would also be a 2-liner comment inserted to explain why that is the default?? So I don't see why the user would be frustrated!? Right there, without them even having asked, is all the config options they need to enable to get AA to work on their modem, along with a few lines explaining that fact. Bonus!

-Darren




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