[Info-vax] PC/VT Keyboarrd Mapping

[Stephen Hoffman]

On 2016-06-27 01:21:58 +0000, John Reagan said:

> The trouble with two RTLs is that they will never be separate.  People 
> will demand that you can fopen() with one RTL but fprintf() with the 
> other.  Same for setenv()/getenv().  The two RTLs would have to have a 
> private channel between each other.

Ayup.  Particularly if some app is exposing RTL constructs directly 
through its API, and that the caller is then using.   But how common is 
that?

Announce the new RTL and preferably with all of the core VSI apps and 
tools migrated and with most of the rest migrating, announce that 
mixing RTLs won't work and isn't supported, announce the public 
schedule for the deprecation of the old RTL first through the removal 
and relocation of old RTL into a separate and extra-cost license and 
installation, and then through copying the RTL and the compatibility 
kit to NLA0:.

This deprecation might well be fodder for using the multi-version 
approach, if y'all start to make that into a supportable and 
sustainable design for OpenVMS itself and for applications.

Getting rid of specific and targeted and problematic old code and 
redesigning or replacing inadequate or broken or insecure APIs is a 
complete shift from past practice.   But it's also the only way you're 
going to make more than token forward progress with OpenVMS.

Make the folks that don't want to move and don't want to migrate pay 
for that, if they are even upgrading.   Make the folks that are moving 
and are updating their apps have an easier time, and with better 
capabilities.




-- 
Pure Personal Opinion | HoffmanLabs LLC