[Buildroot] What's up with the kernel names? (Again)

[Ulf Samuelsson <ulf.samuelsson@atmel.com>]

Subject: Re: [Buildroot] What's up with the kernel names? (Again)


> Hi,
> 
> On Tue, Feb 10, 2009 at 11:50 AM, Ulf Samuelsson
> <ulf.samuelsson@atmel.com> wrote:
>>> >> Sure, we should try to make sure everything still works, but we also
>>> >> HAVE to make it easy to do so - That means among others that the
>>> >> various platforms should behave similary.
>>> >>
>>> Ulf> Each platform in u-boot behaves differently anyway.
>>> Ulf> You define the functionality of u-boot in the board header file.
>>>
>>> Sure, that's why the only sane default is to use the filenames the
>>> upstream projects use as that's what people expect.
>>>
>>> This doesn't mean that we shouldn't provide a setting (like the
>>> suffix/prefix thing) to use other names if people want that, but it
>>> shouldn't be default.
>>
>>
>> The default IS to use the filenames the upstream projects use.
>> You get that by selecting the standard build.
>> When you select an "advanced" configuration, you should
>> expect things to be a little different, don't you agree?
> 
> First of all, that's not fair when you have said earlier that some
> platforms (namely avr32) are just unable to build with the "standard"
> option, and therefore, there is no choice.
> Second of all, I expect to have more choices in advanced, not less.
> Third of all, your At91 customers will have the exact same problem had
> they choosen the standard build because they also don't want the
> forced odd name.
> 
>> There is a setting to generate the u-boot autoscript.
>> If you use that, you really want the stuff to be compatible
>> with the u-boot patches.
>> I am OK with using that to set the default filename to the previous
>> "complex" file name, and let the
>> normal #Image possibly with PREFIX/SUFFIX
>> be the default otherwise.
>>
>> The patches for U-boot are generic and coould be applied
>> for any architecture.
>>
>> The problem I am trying to solve is with newbies calling in wanting help
>> with the configuration of u-boot.
>> That can be done with a short email instead of 30-60
>> minutes conversation, with this fully working.
>>
> 
> I found this on the patches:
> +       setenv("linux",
> MK_STR(BOARD_NAME)"-linux-"MK_STR(KERNEL_VERSION)"-"MK_STR(DATE)".gz");
> 
> That was broken to begin with. It has an hardcoded filename extension,
> while the previous "naming convention" allowed for other different
> extensions. The proper way of doing that would be:
> 
> +       setenv("linux",         MK_STR(KERNEL_LINUX26_NAME));
> 
> even without my changes! Only then it would be set to the kernel name,
> whatever it might be. After that just echo that make variable to the
> header where you previously defined the other macros.
> Now, if we change the patch like above, at least this part, would work
> even with standard build since I've made those variables have the same
> name in both standard and advanced build.
> 
> While still on the subject, why haven't the patches been submitted
> upstream? Last time you said that the At91 had given up because u-boot
> devs were unavailable. Then, after that, avr32 team were able to get
> their patches upstream. Why haven't At91 tried again?
> 
> We probably wouldn't be having this conversation had patches been
> submited upstream, because they would not accept that and it would
> have been fixed then.
> 
> I think I can edit the patch manually and have it build, but I can't
> download it to a target, unless you want to ship a board and
> programming tool to Brazil (with taxes to be collected from sender,
> otherwise I will just refuse the package).
> 
> Kind Regards,
>    Thiago A. Correa
>