Re: Steps to get to GTK+ 3.0

[Martyn Russell <martyn imendio com>]

Mikael Hermansson wrote:
> On Fri, 2008-06-06 at 18:22 +0100, Gustavo J. A. M. Carneiro wrote:
> 
>> I think I agree with Muntyan here.  Gtk+ 3.0 brings nothing exciting, so
>> why break API?  It's just so pointless and painful for everyone.  So
>> much effort done with memory profiling and now we'll have to have two
>> libraries, gtk+ 2.0 and gtk+ 3.0, side by side, for a few more years?
>>
>> If, as I suspect, Gtk+ 3.0 is more of a marketing stunt than anything
>> else, great, we can release the next gtk+ 2.x as two separate libraries
>> and header files:
>>    1. gtk+-3.0: only the non-deprecated APIs
>>    2. gtk+-2.0 deprecated: only the deprecated APIs
>>
>> $(pkg-config --libs gtk+-2.0) would yield -lgtk+-2.0 -lgtk+-3.0,
>> while $(pkg-config --libs gtk+-3.0) would give -lgtk+-3.0.
>>
>> Everyone will be happy.  Projects that compile with gtk+ 2.0 with
>> GTK_DISABLE_DEPRECATED automatically become "gtk+ 3.0 ready".
>>
> 
> Now I dont get it?? First you say 
> 
> "Once Gtk+ 3.0 comes out, Gtk+ 2.0
> will die a slow death, and projects have to switch to Gtk+ 3.0
> eventually."

GTK+ 2.0 is already dying a slow death.

> Next you say we should implement using wierd macros like
> GTK_DISABLE_DEPRECATED?

Why is this weird? Is it better to just remove the old code and not make
it possible for any smooth transition period for application developers?

> what is the difference? As a application developer you still has to
> check for both Gtk+2 and Gtk+3 and have alot of #ifdef to check if
> version is 2 or 3 is installed and your back at the begining of your
> coinclusion meaning: "Gtk+ 2.0 will die slowly" 

This allows for updating you application in two stages.

1. Stop using all deprecated widgets and update your application to use
newer widgets or something else.

2. Remove all places in your application where you access widget members
directly, this is one of the things that makes maintaining GTK+ so
difficult.

The alternative is, we just deprecate all widgets which have been marked
so and we just clean up all public structure members and you have to fix
everything in ONE go. This is potentially a LOT more work and if there
are new features/bug fixes in GTK+ 3.0 that get added, you can't use any
of those until you fix #1 and #2 first.

-- 
Regards,
Martyn