[plug] kernel 2.6.4

[Sham Chukoury]

On Mon, 2004-03-22 at 09:14, Onno Benschop wrote:
> Hi folks,
> 
> In my time I've compiled a few kernels and I'm not afraid to now,
> however I feel completely overwhelmed by the number of options - and
> even though there is help, often it's so terse that the information
> might as well have been removed.

Yes, it's true that there's a heap of options available, when building
the kernel, but I don't think that's a bad thing... I reckon the point
of having so many options is to make it flexible enough for people to
customise their kernels as they want. Thus, if you don't want to go
through the hassle of checking all the options, why not download a
pre-compiled kernel image, with some sensible default options? :)


> Where o where do I find a place that walks me through *all* the options
> so I can say, "Yes, that is what I want - and I understand what the
> implications will be..."
> 
> I'm not afraid of reading, but reading the source seems a little
> over-kill just to compile a kernel IMHO.
> 
> I'd just like my first 2.6.x kernel experience to be a positive one...

I don't think you'll find anything that will walk you through *all* of
the available kernel config options... The kernel is constantly
changing, thus the options and their implications are constantly
changing. It might be possible for someone to completely document every
config option available for a particular kernel version, but this body
of information would become more obsolete, with every subsequent kernel
release. So, you'd need someone who's like, paid to keep up with the
LKML (Linux Kernel Mailing List) full time, to keep track of the changes
and update documents as needed...

Therefore, the next best thing, I reckon, is to google for documentation
relevant to the option/subsystem you're trying to build, or even
(hopefully) mailing list/forum posts about some issue. I usually do
that, and then ask for clarification on certain IRC channels, if needed.

As for the 2.6.x kernel experience... It did take me a few hours of
configuring, checking, googling, reading, and about half a dozen
re-builds to get it right. But once I was there, I was impressed. :)

Good luck.
§:)