Re: New Kernel Guide

[Gary Lawrence Murphy <garym@canada.com>]

>>>>> "G" == Guylhem Aznar <guylhem@oeil.qc.ca> writes:

    G> Why don't we start a linux-kernel guide ?  It could include
    G> current Documentation, with special sections for kernel
    G> 'hackers'.  A bit ala Kernel Hacker Guide, but with up to date
    G> information.

Well, apart from it being the subject of my book (the infamous OPL/B
argument from a few months ago ;) so, not surprisingly, I think it is
a darn good idea ;) 

To relate my own experience on this subject: It is bigger than you
think.  The kernel has changed so much since the days of the LKPG only
the very highest level views make any sense.  None of the existing
docs are very helpful at all, and Linux is nearly 4 times larger than
it was last time it was properly documented (Beck and Remi). The
project has also since attracted a lot of top engineers from highly
regarded commercial shops (SGI being just one of them), and major
subsystems have been completely re-written; it is also morphing at an
accellerated pace and there are many changes afoot (eg v4l-2) which
will make any documentation obsolete before it can be finished.

It is not impossible, but it is not something I'd want to volunteer to
produce in my spare time --- a 6 month publisher-funded ORA-style OPL
contract with numerous paid contributors was the best compromise I
could find.  Of course, like the ORA and NewRiders books, the B-option
licence means the LDP will not accept our book when it is done, but
being OPL, if you can wait for a while, you could just plunder it for
content ideas and then re-write the contents into a new GPL book.

-- 
Gary Lawrence Murphy <garym@linux.ca>: office voice/fax: 01 519 4222723
TCI - Business Innovations through Open Source : http://www.teledyn.com
Canadian Co-ordinators for Bynari International : http://ca.bynari.net/
Moderator, Linux Education Group: http://www.egroups.com/group/linux-ed


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