Published on: 2016-01-29T07:57:00+00:00
According to Btc Drak, the bitter resentment over the need for consensus on non-consensus features in codebase forks is a problem. He believes that forks with non-consensus features are acceptable and desirable because they allow for more freedom in upper layers. Eric Lombrozo, a Bitcoin developer, agrees with this perspective and suggests that a better process is needed to distinguish between different layers for bitcoin modification proposals.Lombrozo gives an example of BIP64 proposed by Mike Hearn, which did not affect the consensus layer at all. Despite being disliked by many Core developers, having nodes that support BIP64 would not fundamentally break the Bitcoin network. However, the pushback from Core developers led Mike to break off from Core and create XT as his applications required BIP64 to work. Lombrozo emphasizes the importance of a process that clearly distinguishes these different layers and allows more freedom in the upper layers while requiring agreement at the consensus layer.To address this issue, Lombrozo has submitted a BIP - BIP123 - that includes all currently proposed and accepted BIPs. He urges everyone to seriously consider getting this BIP accepted as a top priority before more projects attempt to make modifications without understanding these critical distinctions. However, it is pointed out that Eric's proposal does not solve the issue related to Mike creating his own fork, as he had a non-consensus feature set that Bitcoin Core disagreed with. The creation of individual forks with different features is encouraged if there is a strong differing of technical opinions and node security concerns.In summary, the current situation with forks in the Bitcoin network could have been avoided with a better process to distinguish between different layers for bitcoin modification proposals. The example of BIP64 and Mike Hearn's creation of XT highlights the need for a clear distinction between consensus and non-consensus features. Lombrozo's BIP123 proposal aims to address this issue and includes all currently proposed and accepted BIPs. It is crucial to prioritize the acceptance of this BIP to prevent further projects from making modifications without understanding these critical distinctions.
Updated on: 2023-08-01T17:40:29.651438+00:00