Desire for more characters in front-end model / channel name "subsystem"
As the IFO gets more complex, and we're running low on three-letter-acronyms that make sense, we'd like the RCG team to consider allowing for more than 3 characters for "subsystems" in channel names. For example, in A+ O5, it makes a lot of sense to convert
H1:OMC-{channel}_{details}
to
H1:OMCA-{channel}_{details} and H1:OMCB-{channel}_{details}
where the channel structure will remain
{IFO}:{SUBSYSTEM}_<channel>_<details>
In discussing this with @ezekiel.dohmen and @david.barker, they suggest, ideally, the RCG would be revamped to build channel names and infrastructure not based on the first 5 characters of the .mdl file name, but instead the {IFO} be parsed from the CDS parameter block, and the {SUBSYSTEM} be parsed from the top_names of the blocks on the top level of the .mdl. The existing "top_names" feature does override that "last three of the first five define the channel subsystem" rule, but as it stands, I think those top_names still need to be three characters.
No urgent time-line on this request, but having this "by the end of O4" would probably be good so we can get a jump on the O5 controls infrastructure. All I'd need at this point is a promise that "yup, we'll definitely do that" soon, since we're in the final design phase of A+ O5 ISC and naming sensors, so we'd like to know that we can handle that.