On Mar 6, 2024, at 7:39 AM, James Cloos <cloos@jhcloos.com> wrote:
"RA" == Russ Allbery <eagle@eyrie.org> writes:
RA> and it's probably time to assume everyone supports the Olson RA> identifiers.
Operwrt, at least in general, does not.
I.e., it doesn't provide tzdb files, to save storage space on small embedded devices?
(Nor does aix, if anyone still cares.)
According to at least one page on IBM's support web site, "The default timezone format for AIX 6.1 and AIX 7 is Olson Time": https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/managing-time-zone-variable-posix Is that no longer the case?
I have a clock (actual hw clock) which uses ntp by way of an embedded mips board running a version of openwrt. It lack the ram and storage to use tzdb. So I have to use EST5EDT,M3.2.0/2:00:00,M11.1.0/2:00:00 for the timezone. (The explicit /2:00:00 might be avoidable, but the use of self documenting data can be beneficial.)
If the desire here is to allow all users of a system to specify time zones using old-style TZ strings such as EST5EDT rather than either POSIX-style or tzdb-style strings, if the system in question can be used outside of a particular hardwired polity, that'll require some way for time zone rules to be specified. If the desire here is to allow old-style TZ strings within a given polity - said polity probably being the US - to use old-style TZ strings, that could be done by hardcoding the rules for the US and use them, and, if the US changes the rules, distribute an update to the system.
(I must say it was a bit anoying that the library kept the original definition of EST5EDT et alia rathar than moving with the legislation. But only a bit.)
To which library are you referring here?