since when did "sysctl" not require "-w" to make a change?

[Frans Ketelaars]

On Wed, 12 May 2010 20:47:40 -0400, Robert P. J. Day wrote:

> needing to make a change under /proc/sys and, following the instructions
> on a web page, typed the following:
> 
>   $ sudo sysctl vm.mmap_min_addr=0
> 
> now, sure enough, it worked, but the man page for "sysctl" suggests
> that, to simply change a value like this, you need the "-w" option:
> 
> $ man sysctl
> ...
> variable=value
>       To  set a key, use the form variable=value where variable is the
>       key and value is the value to set it to.  If the value  contains
>       quotes or characters which are parsed by the shell, you may need
>       to enclose the value in double quotes.   This  requires  the  -w
>       parameter to use.
> 
>   ignoring that last bit of tortured syntax, doesn't that read as that
> you *must* use -w to effect a change?  that's what i'd always thought.

http://www.linux.com/archive/feature/146599 states: "You may not even 
need the -w option -- it seems to be deprecated. Do some experimenting on 
your own to confirm that."

It seems the man page / documentation is outdated :)

    -Frans