[Mesa-dev] [PATCH 1/7] util: add MAYBE_UNUSED for config dependent variables

[Chad Versace]

On Tue 19 Apr 2016, Ian Romanick wrote:
> On 04/19/2016 12:15 PM, Chad Versace wrote:
> > On Tue 19 Apr 2016, Emil Velikov wrote:
> >> On 19 April 2016 at 19:38, Ian Romanick <idr at freedesktop.org> wrote:
> >>> On 04/19/2016 07:48 AM, Emil Velikov wrote:
> >>>> On 18 April 2016 at 19:01, Ian Romanick <idr at freedesktop.org> wrote:
> >>>>> On 04/18/2016 08:06 AM, Emil Velikov wrote:
> >>>>>> On 18 April 2016 at 04:43, Francisco Jerez <currojerez at riseup.net> wrote:
> >>>>>>> Grazvydas Ignotas <notasas at gmail.com> writes:
> > 
> > FYI, systemd uses a nice convention for attributes that is nicer on the
> > eyes than ALL_CAPS and doesn't violate the standard with
> > double-underscore. systemd declares attributes as _lower_case_.
> > 
> > For example:
> > 
> >   #define _maybe_unused_ __attribute__((unused))
> 
> That wouldn't be terrible.  If there is general support changing, we
> should change all of everything at once... and document the new practice.
> 
> My goal previously in the thread is to explain how and why we got to
> where we are... and how that supports the patch as is. :)

I also support that patch as-is. But...

MAYBE_UNUSED tells you the variable is *unimportant* by YELLING. It
*accentuates* the unimportant rather than diminishing it.

I prefer to reserve ALL_CAPS for items that need TO SCREAM AND GET YOUR
ATTENION; things like FIXME, TODO, and macros like MAX() that suffer
from multiple-expansion. Using ALL_CAPS for innocuous items like an
"unused" attribute hurts my eyes, and distracts me from more important
things in the code.