[ale] Kernel problem

[Jim Philips]

On Saturday 20 April 2002 07:54 pm, James CE Johnson wrote:
> > Here is what the README says:
> >
> >  "make oldconfig"   Default all questions based on the contents of
> >                            your existing ./.config file.
>
> Ok, so I'll go read the README.
>
> <time passes>
> In the paragraph just before your quote it says:
>
>   If you want to carry your existing configuration to a
>   new version with minimal work, use "make oldconfig", which will
>   only ask you for the answers to new questions.

Okay. Call me a compulsive. I always run make xconfig when I install a new 
kernel. That's maybe two to three times a year, so I must be wasting huge 
amounts of labor. I review what the options do to keep myself familiar. 
Sometimes I learn new things. For the longest time, the kernel included an 
outdated driver for my NIC, which is based on the Tulip chip. Every time I 
installed a kernel, I had to build a new module with the latest update from 
scyld.com. At some point, the kernel included an up to date driver and I 
didn't have to do that anymore. I only knew that by playing with config 
options. It was probably there in the change log, but that was still no proof 
it would work on my machine. I had to tinker. I'm glad I did. I'll keep doing 
it.
>
> > But nobody (except maybe Alan Cox) knows what features will be in the new
> > kernel until it comes out. And only you know if you want them supported
> > in your kernel or not. So, it's just a good practice to take a look.


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