Make the .opk as the default file extension

[Richard Purdie]

Hi Tick,

On Mon, 2008-07-28 at 17:52 +0800, Tick Chen wrote:
>   Since we forked the opkg from ipkg, it make people confuses as we are
> still using .ipk as the file extension. So I created this patch to make
> the .opk as the default file extension of packages. 
> The new opkg still supports .ipk files.

Can I advise against this in the strongest possible way.

Why?

1. This "cosmetic" change is going to have massive implications for our
build systems, instead of having to deal with one extension we now have
to deal with both and make sure they are handled equally. This will mean
updating a load of tools and then having to scan for both file
extensions. It raises questions about issues like what if both a .opk
and .ipk are present?

2. There are also the political implications. People will assume .opk is
somehow superior to .opk and put pressure for everyone to change. Anyone
who doesn't will be seen as "backward". Forcing everyone into this
change isn't desirable. 

I'd have no objection to a new extension if it was for a good reason
such as a file format change. Just changing the extension for the sake
of it seems pointless given the disruption it will cause though.

Please think very carefully about this change and its implications.

Regards,

Richard