perlapi/perlintern: Note binary-compatibility-only entries #23332
Conversation
Some API elements exist only so that already-existing uses of them can continue to use them without change. Generally newer/shinier methods have come along to accomplish the tasks these do, and new code should use those newer methods. It effectively is deprecated to use these for new code. This commit changes perlapi and perlintern to highlight such elements as not being wise to use going forward. Also, we should feel no pressure to add documention on how to use these elements. The code that already uses them probably already knows how to use them. And if it isn't using them properly, it would be advantageous to convert to use the shinier method, instead of trying to figure out how to get the old one to work. However, this change shows that some elements are wrongly marked as being binary-compatibility only. The list of these needs to examined, and other commits made to remove that marking when appropriate. The list is contained in http://nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/269936
|
Regarding my post at https://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2025/05/msg269942.html and all of thread http://nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/269936 . What is your/perl's definition of the word "binary-compatibility"? Do you mean compatibility with pre-existing, long ago compiled Or do you really mean unmodified C source code compatibility with ancient CPAN Add a sentence somewhere in the commit body, or somewhere in the commit's src code, clarifying what "binary-compatibility" means in this exact patch/this exact case. The p5p/.git tech term "binary-compatibility" ever since the release of 5.10.0 been very blurry and multiple meanings. "binary-compatibility" can mean:
|
Some API elements exist only so that already-existing uses of them can continue to use them without change. Generally newer/shinier methods have come along to accomplish the tasks these do, and new code should use those newer methods.
It effectively is deprecated to use these for new code.
This commit changes perlapi and perlintern to highlight such elements as not being wise to use going forward. Also, we should feel no pressure to add documention on how to use these elements. The code that already uses them probably already knows how to use them. And if it isn't using them properly, it would be advantageous to convert to use the shinier method, instead of trying to figure out how to get the old one to work.
However, this change shows that some elements are wrongly marked as being binary-compatibility only. The list of these needs to examined, and other commits made to remove that marking when appropriate. The list is contained in
http://nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/269936