[Buildroot] Real time Linux implementation

[Michael S. Zick <minimod@morethan.org>]

On Sat December 3 2011, Thomas Petazzoni wrote:
> > Will the project need a general policy of just how "strange and unusual"
> > will be considered for inclusion in the build system?
> > 
> > My reason for posing this question early in the life-time of the
> > "kernel extensions" feature is the on-going maintenace chore of 
> > these specializations.
> 
> For all these kernel extensions, Buildroot does not even try to make
> sure that the kernel selected by the user is compatible with the kernel
> extension that was enabled. We leave that work to the user, simply
> because it is impossible to keep track of which kernel extension
> supports which kernel version on which architecture.
> 
> I think that Buildroot is merely a tool to automate the build process
> of an embedded Linux system. It doesn't, and it will never, replace the
> engineer that makes decision on using Xenomai version X, knowing that
> it supports the kernel version Y that he is using on his embedded
> device. Buildroot only helps here by making the build process
> automated, *once* the engineer has made the right choices in terms of
> versions (kernel version and kernel extension version).
> 

Sounds like a policy statement to me.
Buildroot != Automated engineering

Maybe even distill that down to a (polite) "user is on their own here"
comment at the head of the kernel extensions menu branch.
;-)

Since BR does provide a great degree of build automation, a new user
might just assume that it is also fully checking package compatability.
(It doesn't and I agree that it shouldn't - different job.)

Mike