ELF Binary Stripper?

[Mike McCarty]

Ulrich Drepper wrote:
> Mike McCarty wrote:
> 
>>Yes, my guess as well. IMO prelink is worse than useless.
>>[...]
>>Why does it even exist?
> 
> 
> Do you see the inconsistency is this tirade?  You don't know what it is
> for and nevertheless condemn it as useless.

No, I condemn it as *worse* than useless.

First:

A few senteces in a calm voice do not constitute a tirade.

[QUOTE MODE ON]

Funk & Wagnalls New Comprehensive International Dictionary
of the English Language:

tirade: n. 1. A prolonged declamatory outpouring, as of censure.

[QUOTE MODE OFF]

The other definition relates to music.

Second:

The fact that I don't know what it is, yet is consumes resources
unexpectedly and modifies the software on my machine is what makes
me say it is worse than useless. That is not inconsistent, it
is rational.

Seemingly, you think it good practice for things which (1) I don't know
what they are and which (2) are not documented in the easily available
places on my machine to run unannounced.

> If you don't want/need/like the advantages prelink provides you are free
> to disable it.
> If you don't want the extra security re-prelinking provides, comment out
> the PRELINK_FULL_TIME_INTERVAL definition in the config file.

 From the man page (info only gives the man page)

[QUOTE MODE ON]

prelink is a program which  modifies  ELF  shared  libraries  and  ELF
dynamically  linked  binaries,  so  that the time which dynamic linker
needs for their relocation at startup significantly decreases and also
due to fewer relocations the run-time memory consumption decreases too
(especially number of unshareable pages).

[QUOTE MODE OFF]

Hmm. Supposed security features prominently absent.
Hmm. Also prominently absent are the means to disable it.
(You may check for yourself, I don't want to put the
full man page here.)

So, I have a tool which, for reasons which are not stated in
the documentation, "updates" the software running on my machine,
without first either notifying me, asking whether that is what
I want done, nor telling me what the true benefits are,
nor telling me how to disable it. Then it slows down my machine,
making it difficult even to type, sometimes.

And MicroSoft gets accused of trying to own our machines?

> For the majority of people (especially those who do not follow rawhide
> daily) prelink is of big benefit.

In case you haven't noticed, my machine is mine. What software I put
on it is my decision. What state the software remains in should be
my decision.

The only documented reason for its existence is not one I want done
on my machine.

The supposed reason you give is one which I might or might not
approve of, but I am not either told about it in the docs,
nor am I given running it as an option, it is just automatically run.

And you complain that I say something like this is worse than
useless.

Anything that uses space or cycles on my machine had better have
a reason for existence that I approve of. I don't need to be made
aware of what every little action on my machine might be.
But something which I notice running from across the room because
I can hear the disc go nuts, and which makes it difficult to
manage my machine from time to time because I can't type
needs a *real* justification, and one which I can find in two minutes.
Otherwise, it is

WORSE THAN USELESS

because it consumes my time, my mental energy, and my emotions
wondering just

WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON IN MY MACHINE!?

Since there is at least one person who posted a question on this
topic, I suppose there are others out there like me who are
annoyed and worried by this tool.

We used to call programs which modified other programs without
the owner's consent VIRUSES and TROJANS. I suppose that
prelink falls into the TROJAN category, because it's real
reason for existence is not what is advertised as such.

Now you may feel justified in using the term "tirade".
But don't accuse me of censure.

Mike
-- 
p="p=%c%s%c;main(){printf(p,34,p,34);}";main(){printf(p,34,p,34);}
This message made from 100% recycled bits.
You have found the bank of Larn.
I can explain it for you, but I can't understand it for you.
I speak only for myself, and I am unanimous in that!