Date: Thu, 1 Dec 2005 12:24:55 -0800
From: Andrew Morton <akpm@osdl.org>
To: Russell King <rmk+lkml@arm.linux.org.uk>
Cc: ray-gmail@madrabbit.org, zippel@linux-m68k.org, mrmacman_g4@mac.com,
       tglx@linutronix.de, linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org, mingo@elte.hu,
       george@mvista.com, johnstul@us.ibm.com
Subject: Re: [patch 00/43] ktimer reworked
Message-Id: <20051201122455.4546d1da.akpm@osdl.org>
In-Reply-To: <20051201165144.GC31551@flint.arm.linux.org.uk>
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	<2c0942db0512010822x1ae20622obf224ce9728e83f8@mail.gmail.com>
	<20051201165144.GC31551@flint.arm.linux.org.uk>
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Russell King <rmk+lkml@arm.linux.org.uk> wrote:
>
> rmk, also a native English speaker, agrees with Ray, Thomas and Ingo.
>  As does dictionary.reference.com's definitions of timeout and timer:
> 
>   timeout
> 
>    A period of time after which an error condition is raised if some event
>    has not occured. A common example is sending a message. If the receiver
>    does not acknowledge the message within some preset timeout period, a
>    transmission error is assumed to have occured.
> 
>   timer
> 
>    a timepiece that measures a time interval and signals its end
> 
>  Hence, timers have the implication that they are _expected_ to expire.
>  Timeouts have the implication that their expiry is an exceptional
>  condition.

Well timer_lists get around the problem quite neatly by handling both
situations.  In a way which has been learned by thousands of developers
over many years.

The whole concept of separating "timers" from "timeouts" seems a step
backward to me.  A large one.   Why was it done, and can it be undone?
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