[U-Boot] [PATCH] M28: GPIO pin validity check added

[Robert Deliën]

Hi Wolfgang,

How nice of you to drop a message, I really appreciate it.

> Part of this problem might be the result from an attitude of "I don't
> have the time to learn doing thisngs right, but I always have time to
> repeat them wrongly again and again".

In the end, doing things right always pays, but that's not always obvious
at the beginning. I figured that I could just hand-craft these three
patches in three hours and be done with it. Just for that, switching from
SVN to GIT didn't seem worth the effort.
Now it turns out that whole the mxs gpio subsystem just doesn't work
(consider the irony of bickering about tabs and spaces), so I'll may send
my work to Marek and have him decide whether he will put it to use or
throw it away.

> For example, you still haven't figured out how to configure your
> mailer so it wraps lines after some 70 characters or so.

Exchange can do it, but copying/pasting to exchange damages it.
Exchange Webmail cannot do it, neither can Mac Mail: The option just
isn't there.
This message is hand-wrapped; our of respect.

> This is something that I really cannot understand.  If I find myself
> in such a situation, I would probably start tinking what can be done
> to avoid such pain when I do this the second time.  If it's any
> significant amount of time I would nover do it a third time, but
> rather think of alternatives.

The point is that every time I do it, I think it's the last time I need to, so
there's no point in finding a structural solution. In hindsight however...

> Yes, this might involve learning git, but each hour invested in that
> is _much_ better spent then performing repeated, mechanical work.

It's good to get used to GIT, it's just that timing is a bit inconvenient
right now. In two months from now, when our A-sample is brought
up and all subsystems are working, things will look differently.

> Did you read the available instructions for sending patches, or for
> configuring mailers not to mess with your code?

I've read the instructions on your page on creating and submitting
patches. I have adhered where I could, but unfortunately I couldn't
get GIT to talk to our corporate mail server. I still need to reconfigure
my own Exchange 2010 server to accept mail from GIT, but I lack
some knowledge there (and proud of it).

> Again, there are _tons_ of checklists on the web that explain how to
> configure your MUA - not to mention that there is wide choice of MUA
> for basicly all systems.

I have searched the web, but Mail really doesn't support it. Apple is
using format=flow and assumes everybody handles that properly. 

> Friction usually requires two sides…

That's very Zen-like. And between you and me; Yes, we've had our
history there, if you remember. But I have learned from that and tried
to do things differently, trying to be cooperative, modest and accepting
the Custodian's authorities. But still I didn't feel appreciated or even
welcome. I don't need gratitude, but I do deserve the same social
courtesy as people do in real life. That's what I try to do.
For example, if somebody - who you have never met before - is trying
to help you in real life, would you respond like this if the help turns out
to be a bit clumsy:

> AARGH! Please add the following lines to the commit message:
> 
> Cc: Marek Vasut <marek.vasut at gmail.com>
> Cc: Stefano Babic <sbabic at denx.de>
> 
> !!!!

Even without politenesses like 'sorries' and 'pleases', this looks a lot
friendlier and is educational at the same time:

Next time, include the lines below in the body of your message, and the
mailing list will take care of the rest:
Cc: Marek Vasut <marek.vasut at gmail.com>
Cc: Stefano Babic <sbabic at denx.de>

No caps-lock nor multiple exclamation marks involved.
Or how about this:

> sorry if my messages have been a bit harsh with gpio freedback.  the unwrapped 
> lines and broken patch formats make me see red.

I took it as an informal apology, lightened up with a joke. But if it's not,
please seek help! I can only hope you don't have a gun permit.

It's such a putty: U-Boot is a fantastic Open Source project. Before U-Boot,
it took me a year to develop a proprietary boot loader that didn't do much
more than booting and loading. Nowadays nearly every SoC imaginable
is supported by U-Boot, and U-Boot support has become a mandatory
criterion for SoC selection. Besides regular booting, it caters for very
complicated boot scenarios too. It became an essential tool for development
and board bring up too. Many attempts have been made to copy it, but there
is no equal by far, and all thanks to the people of the community. Unbelievable
what motivated like-minded people can achieve.

Thank you Wolfgang.

Cheers,

         Robert.