Re: [PATCH] Improve ability to display optimizer analysis using OPTIMIZER_DEBUG

John Naylor <john(dot)naylor(at)enterprisedb(dot)com> writes:
> Note that the TODO list has accumulated some cruft over the years. Some
> time ago I started an effort to remove outdated/undesirable entries, and I
> should get back to that, but for the present, please take the warning at
> the top to heart:

> "WARNING for Developers: Unfortunately this list does not contain all the
> information necessary for someone to start coding a feature. Some of these
> items might have become unnecessary since they were added --- others might
> be desirable but the implementation might be unclear. When selecting items
> listed below, be prepared to first discuss the value of the feature. Do not
> assume that you can select one, code it and then expect it to be committed.
> "

I think we could make that even stronger: there's basically nothing on
the TODO list that isn't problematic in some way. Otherwise it would
have been done already. The entries involve large amounts of work,
or things that are subtler than they might appear, or cases where the
desirable semantics aren't clear, or tradeoffs that there's not
consensus about, or combinations of those.

IME it's typically a lot more productive to approach things via
"scratch your own itch". If a problem is biting you directly, then
at least you have some clear idea of what it is that needs to be fixed.
You might have to work up to an understanding of how to fix it, but
you have a clear goal.

regards, tom lane