[GRASS5] Re: KerGIS

[Glynn Clements]

Markus Neteler wrote:

> > As I don't really work on the vector modules, any
> > improvements to the display or raster modules automatically get fed into
> > 5.7 so I don't feel at all guilty about 'neglecting' it.
> 
> This is actually not completely true. 
> 
> E.g. (recent changes)
> 
> 2004-01-24 02:53  <hidden>
> 
>         * XDRIVER/XDRIVER24/Graph_Set.c: Erase window at startup (prevents
>         "transparent" window when starting without  selecting).
> 
> ... I had to merge. It's not clear to me why 5.7 is really *ignored*
> by some developers.

Because it's a sufficiently radical departure from the existing code
base that it's effectively a separate project, and not everyone has
the time to work on two projects.

Maybe you should be asking whether it was really necessary fo 5.7 to
have its own version of Graph_set.c, given that the differences amount
to:

1. A different cursor.
2. The default background being white instead of black.

Does this really justify forking that file (and also Serve_Xevent.c,
solely for point 2)?

How many of the files which have been forked in 5.7 are really
necessary? I'm not counting cases where, all other things being equal,
the change would have been an improvement; because all other things
aren't equal.

Minimising divergence between the two code bases ought to carry *some*
weight (I'm not arguing how much weight, only that it should be
non-zero), and changes should only be made if they provide "enough"
benefit.

-- 
Glynn Clements <glynn.clements at virgin.net>