Re: [openpgp] DRAFT minutes for OpenPGP at IETF 94

[ianG <[e-mail]>]

On 6/11/2015 14:11 pm, Werner Koch wrote:
> Hi Lutz,
>
> On Fri,  6 Nov 2015 09:58, [e-mail] said:
>
>> Requiring the user to stick with old, unmaintained software (which might not
>> even run on it's current system and can't be compiled for the new
>
> We promised to keep on maintaining GnuPG 1.4, which is that old copy:
> all RFC-4880 features.  You would need that for VMS anyway ;-).
>
> Thus there is at least one maintained old software.


Exactly.  It doesn't matter what we write in the standard - some 
software maintainers will do the right thing because their users will 
revolt if they don't.

However, the "right thing" is a slippery concept.  It isn't a universal 
good, it's not a UN-mandated personal right.  Werner's right thing is 
not the right thing for the future and not the right thing for new users 
or other users or even for his users - all of them or all of the time.

If we want everyone in 2025 to be using the good stuff we design today 
in 2015, then *we have to be fierce* about chopping away the old 2.3 
cruft every chance we get.

iang