Re: s390/net: Deletion of unnecessary checks before two function calls

SF Markus Elfring
2014-11-03T16:51:03Z

> After your patch then it will print warning messages.

To which messages do you refer to?

> The truth is I think that all these patches are bad and they make the
> code harder to read.
>
> Before: The code is clear and there is no NULL dereference.

Where do you stumble on a null pointer access?

> After: You have to remember that rtw_free_netdev() accepts NULL
> pointers but free_netdev() does not accept NULL pointers.

Are any improvements needed for the corresponding documentation to make it
better accessible besides the source code?

> The if statements are there for *human* readers to understand and you are
> making it harder for humans to understand the code.

Is there a target conflict between source code understandability
and software efficiency?

> Even for kfree(), just removing the if statement is not really the right
> fix. We do it because everyone knows kfree(), but what Julia Lawall
> said is the real correct way change the code and make it simpler for
> people to understand:
>
> https://lkml.org/lkml/2014/10/31/452

You refer to another update suggestion for the software area
"staging: rtl8188eu".
Do you find adjustments for jump labels easier to accept than the simple
deletion of specific null pointer checks?

> I know it's fun to send automated patches but these make the code worse
> and they waste reviewer time.

I hope that small automated changes can also help to improve affected
source files.

Regards,
Markus