Re: [PATCH] Cleanup of GUC units code

On Thu, 2008-09-04 at 11:51 -0400, Andrew Sullivan wrote:
> On Thu, Sep 04, 2008 at 07:01:18AM -0700, Steve Atkins wrote:
> > Settings in postgresql.conf are currently case-insensitive. Except
> > for the units.
>
> And, of course, filenames when you are using a case-sensitive
> filesystem. Because these are things that are defined by some
> convention other than the ones the PGDG made up. Since units fall
> into that category, it seems to me that we're stuck with using
> external conventions.
>
> > one right now. If the answer to that is something along the lines
> > of we don't support megaabits for shared_buffers, and never will because
> > nobody in their right mind would ever intend to use megabits
> > to set their shared buffer size... that's a useful datapoint when
> > it comes to designing for usability.
>
> And you are going to establish this worldwide convention on what
> someone in right mind would do how, exactly? For instance, I think
> nobody in right mind would use "KB" to mean "kilobytes".

Except those following JEDEC standards ;)

from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JEDEC_memory_standards

-------------------
JEDEC Standard 100B.01[1] defines the "prefix to units of semiconductor
storage capacity" as follows:

* kilo (K): A multiplier equal to 1024 (210).
* mega (M): A multiplier equal to 1 048 576 (220 or K2, where K =
1024).
* giga (G): A multiplier equal to 1 073 741 824 (230 or K3, where
K = 1024).
-------------------

I'm not sure if this applies only to storage _capacity_ or also to stuff
stored using said capacity.

but in general I think it is easier to train millions of DBAs to use kB
than to achieve consensus about what "everybody" assumes on this list,
so I also give "+1" to working on config checker "instead" .

------------------
Hannu