backlighting

[Dale Whitfield]

> Dale Whitfield wrote:
> 
> >I'd also put forward that one can be too precious about ensuring all
> >platforms and all compilers are always supported by all versions of Nedit. 
> >
> >In my view this is slowing progress. Rather get out a version that works
> >on Linux, say, where there is plenty of active development and then work
> >to ensure other platforms are supported. Otherwise the argument just
> >becomes circular and development stalls.
> >
> >I prefer the positive approach - to be finding reasons to add code
> >rather than reasons to leave it out.
> 
> I think we can strike a balanced approach.  On Linux, you get more 
> features, because there are a lot more libraries at our disposal.  I'd 
> rather open a library to do UTF8 conversions that write it all 
> ourselves!  But that means we have to invest some effort at 
> configuration management.  Our build system really doesn't handle 
> multiple configuration options.
> 
> Ideally, all feature would show up on all platforms, but given the 
> stagnation of proprietary Unix, it's really not feasible to do this 
> anymore.  Not without integrating every kind of bit of code under the 
> sun into nedit's code base. Ugh.
> 
> Where I draw the line is coding Linux-only features that completely and 
> permanently break the non-Linux builds.  Running on "plain Unix" is 
> still an important goal.  It's something that we *can* do, that that 
> some of the whizzier editors cannot.

I agree completely with this and wouldn't suggest causing regressions on
other platforms just to have Linux features.

However, that shouldn't preclude having Linux-only features in the
build!

Which leads on to something I believe is inevitable, a move towards a
smarter build system and configuration management. The Makefile-based
method has worked up to now but it has limitations. Here I must bow to
superior knowledge and expertise with perl, scripting and the like. This
ain't my bag!

I've noticed, for example, that the openssl package handles
configuration and install on a wide variety of platforms from Linux,
MacOS, OS2, W32 to VMS. I've cross-compiled it to run on an embedded
PowerPC platform without much difficulty. 

Perhaps, as you suggest, a good way to break out of stagnation is to get
a good build-system up and running. That would then allow platform
support and feature inclusion/exclusion to be better controlled.

> 
> -- 
> NEdit Discuss mailing list - Discuss at nedit.org
> http://www.nedit.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss
> 

--