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Re: [Re: new plugin events]
On Sun, Nov 8, 2009 at 9:47 PM, Joern Rennecke <amylaar@spamcop.net> wrote:
> Quoting Richard Guenther <richard.guenther@gmail.com>:
>
>> On Sun, Nov 8, 2009 at 6:35 PM, Terrence Miller
>
> ...
>>>
>>> For example, as far as I know, no common Linux distribution provides a
>>> package for any kind of GCC branch. I believe (perhaps I am too
>>> optimistic)
>>> that some Linux distributions will package some few GCC plugins.
>>
>> You keep re-iterating this (IMHO bogus) argument. ?I don't see how a
>> plugin
>> in development is any different here - nobody will build or distribute it.
>> OTOH after a branch is mature it will be merged into the GCC core, so it
>> will be immediately available in distributed GCCs.
>
> It is not uncommon that a user complains about some missed optimization or
> pessimization that a proposed new pass might fix.
> At the moment, a developer might ask the user to download the latest
> experimental GCC from trunk, apply his special, even more experimental
> patch to it, build and install it (which might accidentally overwrite
> the stable compiler if the user has more privileges on the machine than
> sysadmin experience), and then check if his code gets better.
> Or the developer might ask the user to send/post his/her code, which might
> need manager approval, or be outright disallowed for confidentiality
> reasons.
>
> With a plugin, the developer can simply point the user at the place where
> he can download the plugin for his current version, and we can get quick
> feedback on the usefulness of the new optimization.
It's not that simple if you are not suggesting that all plugin development
will happen against a stable branch. And even then the plugin binary
needs an exactly mathching gcc version - how do you suppose the user
will get that? By compiling both itself or by the developer being a
distributor of binary gcc versions alongside his plugin?
Note that with the same reasoning the developer could provide patches
against a released gcc instead of just gcc trunk.
Plugins don't make anything easier here. Really.
Richard.