Date: Sun, 24 Dec 2000 10:41:17 -0500 From: Ben Collins <bcollins@debian.org>

I'm not too familiar with zoneinfo symantics, but I need to follow up on a Debian bug report. A user noticed these different MST7MDT zoneinfo files, and that the SystemV ones have the incorrect DST. Why are they different? Shouldn't the all be the same?

f1937d0d3ed3a6cf9ca44e04cb4d8509 /usr/share/zoneinfo/MST7MDT f1937d0d3ed3a6cf9ca44e04cb4d8509 /usr/share/zoneinfo/posix/MST7MDT 1ac36e9eb32fbeb87af9921ba5b58850 /usr/share/zoneinfo/posix/SystemV/MST7MDT 65cbdc206e84bf90b10fabb30c13e9b1 /usr/share/zoneinfo/right/MST7MDT b4885b6a643d6a8c6e5e1f7de5180650 /usr/share/zoneinfo/right/SystemV/MST7MDT 1ac36e9eb32fbeb87af9921ba5b58850 /usr/share/zoneinfo/SystemV/MST7MDT

The SystemV stuff is for compatibility with ancient hosts, none of which must be operating any more, as they mishandle US daylight saving time past 1987. We should obsolete those entries, for the same reason that US/Pacific-PET was removed in 1994: they are far more likely to cause problems than to solve them. The "posix" vs "right" difference is for leap second support. "posix" ignores leap seconds, whereas "right" does not. I suppose we shouldn't just remove the SystemV stuff right away, as there might be some hosts that (mistakenly) use it. But my next proposed patch can replace it with this for now: Link America/Halifax SystemV/AST4ADT Link America/New_York SystemV/EST5EDT Link America/Chicago SystemV/CST6CDT Link America/Denver SystemV/MST7MDT Link America/Los_Angeles SystemV/PST8PDT Link America/Anchorage SystemV/YST9YDT Link America/Puerto_Rico SystemV/AST4 Link America/Indianapolis SystemV/EST5 Link America/Regina SystemV/CST6 Link America/Phoenix SystemV/MST7 Link Pacific/Pitcairn SystemV/PST8 Link Pacific/Gambier SystemV/YST9 Link America/Honolulu SystemV/HST10