Re: address@hidden: Bug#172662: libparted1.6-0: please don't call sgi disklabels mips disklabels]

[Ralf Baechle]

On Sat, Dec 14, 2002 at 10:28:55PM +0100, Guido Guenther wrote:

> > Definately not.  The operating systems I know of using DVH are IRIX, 
> > Risc/OS,
> > Tandem's UNIX, whatev it's name was again, Sinix, DEC Ultrix (They seem to
> > support to styles of partition, DVH and the actual BSD 4.2 label.  No idea
> > why the DVH stuff is there, some modern BSD flavours, including the current
> > ones.  Oh yes, the Linux XFS tools know about the dvh also.
> IMHO the question here is not which operating systems/tools support it
> but which of them uses it natively and as default (I doubt the 'modern
> BSD's do it nor does Ultrix). 

The Ultrix thing was indeed puzzling me.  The only hard fact I can tell
you is that Bugl^wUltrix was shipping with the MIPS dvh.h header file.  For
whatever reason.

> [..snip..]
> > > Basically, I think a name that seems "obvious" to users (as opposed to
> > > "correct") is more user-friendly.  Would "sgi" create any confusion?
> > 
> > For anybody not using an SGI system I bet.
> Linux fdisk calls it SGI/Irix partition layout - it didn't seem to
> confuse anyone (at least I didn't see anything on the linux-mips lists).

Sure.  You're not going to see anything of the Risc/OS crowd.  You may not
be aware of this but Risc/OS is still alive and being shipped.  There is
a Risc/OS licensee which has replaced Risc/OS for some of their embedded
systems with Linux.  You've not ever seen anybody of these guys post :)

(The frontend workstation of those embedded workstations used to be MIPS
RS3220 workstation clones (I got one here) but have been replaced with O2s
in the meantime because the RS3230 being a R3000 box is of course truly
dated.  I've been flamed for the inconsistency of having dvhtool accept
different options than the IRIX version.  Otoh I had the option of GPLing
their dvhtool when I was at SGI but Dave Olsen said the source was too
crude ...)

> Actually parted currently calls it 'mips' which is definitely wrong. So
> would a better name be 'dvh'?

Bingo, that's what I already had suggested in a previous mail.

I used to call it MIPS because dvh.h is (C) MIPS Computer Systems, Inc.
(The processor company used to be a different company - confusing wonders
of modern managment.  Today MIPS Computer Systems, Inc. is part of SGI
btw.) so for the simple reason of this (C) header I was attributing it to
MIPS.

> The number of OSes that use this kind of
> dvh could be listed in the documentation then(in case the all use
> exactly the same dvh).

They seem to, they're all using the essentially same dvh.h file as the
definition of the dvh structure and all have the same dvhtool.

> I'd still prefer something that releates somehow to sgi/irix though.

I prefer explaing things in the documentation.  There is alot more to say
than "SGI/IRIX" could express.  And not all SGI systems are using DVH btw.
just the MIPS and some of the IA64 based ones do.  Nor do all IRIX systems.

  Ralf