On Fri, 03 Sep 2021 09:11:26 -0600, Jonathan Corbet wrote:

Akira Yokosawa [off-list ref] writes:

[Adding Mauro]

quoted

On Thu,  2 Sep 2021 16:08:53 -0600, Jonathan Corbet wrote:

quoted

Commit 3a6541e97c03 (Add documentation about the orphan file feature) added
a new document on orphan files, which is great.  But the use of
"list-table" results in documents that are absolutely unreadable in their
plain-text form.  Switch this file to the regular RST table format instead;
the rendered (HTML) output is identical.

In the "list tables" section of doc-guide/sphinx.rst, the first paragraph
starts with the sentence:

    We recommend the use of list table formats.

Yes, the disadvantage of list tables is mentioned later in the paragraph:

    Compared to the ASCII-art they might not be as comfortable for readers
    of the text files.

, but I still see list-table is meant as the preferred format.

Interesting...that is not at all my memory of the discussions we had at
that time.  There was a lot of pushback against anything that makes the
RST files less readable - still is, if certain people join the
conversation.  Tables were one of the early flash points.  

Mauro, you added that text; do you remember things differently?  Do you
feel we should retain that recommendation?

No, the text was first added by Markus Heiser [added to CC] in commit
0249a7644857 ("doc-rst: flat-table directive - initial implementation")
and have not updated ever since.

He might remember the circumstances, but 2016 was a long time ago,
I guess.

Or did the discussions take place after the list table support had been
added?

        Thanks, Akira (a newcomer to kerneldoc)

Thanks,

jon