In message <CCCCEA4B-3E55-444D-8B0A-A7CDA0D67687_at_noao.edu>, Rob Seaman writes:
>Warner Losh wrote:
>
>> leap seconds break that rule if one does things in UTC such that
>> the naive math just works
>
>POSIX time handling just sucks for no good reason.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again:
There are two problems:
1. We get too short notice about leap-seconds.
2. POSIX and other standards cannot invent their UTC timescales.
These two problems can be solved according to two plans:
A. Abolish leap seconds.
B. i) Issue leapseconds with at least twenty times longer notice.
ii) Ammend POSIX and/or ISO-C
iii) Ammend NTP
iv) Ammend NTP
v) Convince all operating system to adobt the new API
vi) Fix all the bugs in their implementations
vii) Fix up all the relevant application code
viii) Fix all tacit the assumptions about time_t.
I will fully agree, that while taking the much easier approach of
plan A, will vindicate the potheads who wrote the time_t definition,
and thus deprive us of a very satisfactory intelectual reward of
striking their handiwork from the standards, it would cost only a
fraction of plan B.
Poul-Henning
--
Poul-Henning Kamp | UNIX since Zilog Zeus 3.20
phk_at_FreeBSD.ORG | TCP/IP since RFC 956
FreeBSD committer | BSD since 4.3-tahoe
Never attribute to malice what can adequately be explained by incompetence.
Received on Sat Jan 06 2007 - 11:49:18 PST