Re: Open-Source and programming style

[kenner@lab.ultra.nyu.edu (Richard Kenner)]

In article <m3g1blw9dw.fsf@fred.muc.de> Andi Kleen <ak@muc.de> writes:
>Another example is gcc/egcs, although the requirement/new
>design documents usually only apply to part of the source because they're
>already working with a very large code base.

I think gcc/egcs is actually a bad example, especially in terms of
requirement documents.  It's not like people get together and discuss "well,
what should we put in during Q1 99?".  It's much more of a "Hey great!
Somebody just contibuted most of a new FOOBAR optimization pass!  Let's hack
it into working shape!".

In terms of specifications, of course the base compilers are implementing
precisely specificied languages, but the internal interfaces are indeed not
well specified and this lack has been a serious problem with these
development models. 

A serious problem in a volunteer-based project is that people will volunteer
to do those things they find fun and few people find documentation, code
cleanup, and writing specifications to be fun.  The only way these things get
done is if some central controlling person or group says "You want your code
to be used?  Then you're going to have to do the documentaiton and cleanup we
ask."  In the long term, the success or failure of such projects depends on
the success of that sort of coercion.