Re: ttys

Tim Newsham <newsham@lava.net> writes:

>I think it would be very useful to have a library that
>implements the bulk of the TTY handling for a server. There
>are going to be different programs that need to provide
>TTY features (such as telnetd and cons2).

Let's see, that'd be cons2, MGR, rs-232, telnetd. Of these, MGR and telnetd
would probably be happier using PTY's rather than cooking up TTY handling
themselves. Drivers (RS-232 and cons2) clearly would benefit from some
common code for "being" a TTY.

>As a side note, it seems like there are a lot of different
>server/client interfaces which deviate slightly from the
>the "norm". It would probably be a good idea at some point
>to go through and document what the interface is (partially
>done in the headers already) as well as the deviations
>(extensions and omissions) for various implemented interfaces,
>and perhaps do some code cleanup in the process.

No argument; you have to remember that what the messaging API is, and how
it's used, were evolutionary. Some of the really odd ones are to support
efficient scalability (such as the server interface to TCP). There's
certainly good cleanup potential in this area. However, I'm deep in a
coding effort on a completely different front. Even the run-time system
isn't VSTa (it's a much simpler environment), thus for now I can only
provide moral support and technical consultation.

I'm aware that many potential contributors are frustrated because I neither
actively work on VSTa, nor open it up via, say, SourceForge, to commit
access for others. The problem is that VSTa was a very important exercise
in "going it right" for me, and I would rather have it coast to a
halt--aging, but still clean and consistent--than have it become yet another
inconsistent mess of code thrown in from many directions.

So while I'm actually open to having somebody else become the gatekeeper, my
requirements are pretty strict. It has to be somebody who's not only done
serious kernel work, but done it successfully with results which have been
widely exercised by a user population. This hypothetical person would also
need to be able to grok VSTa, study and accept the coding style and
standards, and consistently follow them while contributing major new
functionality. I'm an increasingly old fart who comes from a time in the
industry when the crafting of the best damn code you could manage was both a
source of pride and an enabler for the success of your business. If I can
find a person who can carry on in this tradition, it would be well worth my
time to work with them. If not, well, it'll look good embedded in amber.

Andy
Received on 26 Jul 2004 17:43:10 GMT