Re: [Caml-list] camlp4..camlp5

["Markus E.L." <ls-ocaml-developer-2006@m-e-leypold.de>]

> Hi,
>
> On Wed, Jul 11, 2007 at 12:39:28AM +0200, Markus E.L. wrote:
>
>> Best thing would have been if the new incompatible camlp* in ocaml
>> 3.10 would have been renamed (to camlp5, obviously).
>
> This is indeed logical but, even if Nicolas and Xavier would agree to
> rename their camlp4, you would have to wait a release of OCaml.

I know. The milk already has been spilled. Nicolas wrote that he did
not want to impose the burden to change their Makefiles on users of
camlp4 who only use compatible functionality. In a sense he is
right. Still: My migration strategy (if I were the OCaml team)
actually would have been to really split the source and have 2
preprocessors (camlp4 and camlp5) in the source tree for a while (they
are incompatible, so the implied contract is broken) and then (after
announcment) drop camlp4 from the distribution in the next release,
perhaps refering to your release stream as alternative. That would
have been clean and given everyone plenty of time to switch. Those
that wouldn't, just would have to change their build time requirements
from ocaml to ocaml + camlp4_daniel.

Well, but it's too late now.

> Since I can make my releases independantly and fastly, I am ready to
> change my camlp4 into camlp5, if everybody agrees, even if I have to
> make also a release of all my sofwares, but it is not a big deal, and
> things would be probably clearer like that.

I'm not affected (not having relied on camlp4 for released software so
far, despite having dappled with it over the years), but I can imagin
that changing your camlp4's name would help a lot. Though camlp5
suggests "the camlp after camlp4, which it obviously isn't :-). What
about camlp4ddr (your initials in honor of the author?). Or simply
camlp4org?

> On a too narrow street, when two vehicles arrive from opposite directions,
> the lighter has to reverse. They are the lorry, I am the car, I can reverse.

Yep. That's the right spirit: Always look at the bright side ... :-).

Regards -- Markus