[asdf-devel] The issue at hand

[Robert P. Goldman]

Faré wrote:
> Robert or Anton: could you grep the archives for my previous audit,
> and try *using* some of the operations defined in Quicklisp?
> This definitely needs be done before the release.

Unfortunately, I am not a quicklisp user.  It does not fit the
development methods of my company.

Doubly unfortunately, I do not have the time to start using quicklisp,
certainly not before the end of February.

So someone else will have to step up and take this on, if it is going to
happen.

I am less convinced than you are that this is critical. It is not the
job of ASDF to fix every program that uses ASDF, any more than the
maintainers of make need to fix every C program.

The new ASDF will break systems that subclass OPERATION.  Those
libraries' maintainers will have to look at their code, based on the
error message, and see what needs to be done.  For the vast majority of
them, five minutes work will suffice.  For those that take more... well,
as you point out, the bug fix had to be made, and I stand ready to help
those who need assistance adjusting.

This will be my last word on the desirability of this change.  ASDF will
go out signaling this error; there will be a different mechanism
provided to warn programmers who have subclassed OPERATION; or there
will be a new lead maintainer.

I will be happy to discuss alternative mechanisms.  I will not respond
to any further correspondence discussing the need for warnings to
programmers.  I am happy to step aside if someone else wishes to take over.

Yours very sincerely,
Robert