Re: Opteron support in dpkg
On Thu, Jun 03, 2004 at 11:23:13AM -0400, Stephen Frost wrote:
> Personally, my preference is to go with whatever produces:
>
> dpkg --print-architecture = amd64
> dpkg --print-gnu-architecture = x86-64 (or x86_64, whichever is right)
I agree. Let's look at some of the arguments that have been raised
recently:
* amd64 ties it to AMD, but we expect Intel to release a compatible
processor as well.
This does not seem to have bothered us when dealing with i386, which
is Intel's chosen name, as opposed to K7 or others that have
developed extensions to Intel's specs. If AMD designed the spec,
I see no reason to avoid giving them credit just as we have done
with Intel or others. Besides, this is the chosen name for the
platform.
The fact that AMD released i386-compatible CPUs didn't lead anyone
to suggest renaming i386 to x86 or ia32. In fact, the existance of
AMD's compatible CPUs predated the existance of Debian itself.
* x86-64 corresponds better with GNU tools and the kernel.
No, it doesn't. They use the underscore. The ensuing confusion
promises to be worse.
Besides, GNU tools often say i486 for our i386 distro.
* We could use the underscore later.
That means switching our name twice more. A huge pain. Plus, we
don't even know if that is the case.
* Others use x86-64.
No, they use x86_64. Actually, plenty of others use amd64, including
Gentoo, NetBSD, FreeBSD, Mandrake, and some other smaller distros.
* Renaming is easy.
As Goswin has pointed out, it's not all that easy and in fact is
quite time-consuming.
I am all for amd64.
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